The proposal by Zimbabwe Revenue Authority (Zimra) Commissioner-General, Mr Gershem Pasi, that civil servants’ incomes be cut by 20 percent across the board to reduce the Government wage bill and stimulate economic growth appears to have torched a storm as civil servants are seething with anger.

Mr Pasi last week argued that civil servants’ salaries were pegged at artificial levels when the country adopted the multi-currency system in 2009 and are now suffocating the meagre national coffers, thus the need for them to be slashed.

The tax collection chief also appeared to be tacitly shooting at civil servants’ perpetual demand for a salary increment saying the country will continue to go “deeper and deeper into the hole” unless the Government persuades its workers to accept a salary cut and adopt the social contract system.

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“Why not say cut by 20 percent across the board, cut wages, interest rates, everything because it will be a social contract. We will give ourselves room to start the growth process,” the Zimra chief was quoted.

Mr Pasi’s utterances reflect some of the modestly underscored facts about the country’s accounts.

They give balance to the Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe Governor Mr John Mangundya and Finance Minister Cde Patrick Chinamasa’s calls for salary restrictions.

Minister Chinamasa, in his 2015 national budget statement, had indicated that about $3,32 billion (81%) of the $4,1 billion set aside for 2015 national budget goes to employment costs.

This leaves a paltry $798 million to cater for operations, debt servicing and capital development programmes, thereby making it difficult for the country to register meaningful growth.

According to Index Mundi, the GDP growth rate has been declining since 2011 and is expected to decline further this year after the growth rate forecasts for 2014 was cut from 6,1 percent to just 2 percent.

However, despite the little growth and high wage bill, it is also understood that the Government workers’ establishment still rose from about 315 000 in 2009 to about 554 000 in 2014.

With the economy shrinking and the number of Government workers increasing, experts say it will be suicidal for Government to increase salaries.

“Salaries and prices should respond to the performance of the economy, meaning if the economy shrinks, the salaries should also shrink,” said economic analyst Mr Chris Chenga.

“However, in our case the economy has not performed that badly to warrant an across-the-board salary cut. If anything, it is the administration of public funds by state organs which has to improve.”

The revelations, though seemingly vindicating Mr Pasi, have, however, failed to ease the wrath of civil servants and the working populace at large.

They are of the view that while Mr Pasi’s assertions may be for a noble cause, they are highly misplaced since maladministration of public funds, not employment cost, is to blame for recurrent expenditure.

“Mr Pasi’s utterances that a salary cut should be done across the board are very wrong, because when you say across the board you are talking about every Government worker and some are earning a mere $100,” said Consumer Council of Zimbabwe executive director, Ms Rosemary Siyachitema.

“It is the “big fish” who have to be targeted. There are those who are getting huge perks in Government and urban councils and they are the ones who should be cut.

“There should be fairness and cutting salaries across the board won’t work. In other words we are simply saying salaries should be in tandem with prices.”

Progressive Teachers Union of Zimbabwe (PTUZ) Programs and communications Officer Mr Enock Paradzayi has also dismissed Mr Pasi’s claims, saying if there should be any salary adjustments then it should be an upward variation.

“People should be very clear what they mean when they talk about civil servants because there are many people in that bracket,” he said.

“In our constituency as teachers our salaries are below the poverty datum line so you cannot talk of cutting the salary of someone who is already in poverty, you should be giving them a raise.

“While it will create discord to give a particular figure that we want, given the current economic situation, all we want is the minimum salary for civil servants to be above the poverty datum line.”

Workers in the private sector have also weighed in the debate saying whatever affects workers in the public service also affects workers in the private sector.

The Zimbabwe Congress of Trade Unions (ZCTU) secretary-general, Mr Japhet Moyo, in a statement said it was easy for Mr Pasi to let off such statements since he was not in the worker’s shoe.

“ZCTU notes with concern the growing calls by individuals in Government circles to temper with workers’ incomes either by calling for wage/salary cuts or freezes, the latest being the call for salary cuts by the Zimra boss Mr Gershem Pasi,” he said.

“The ZCTU is worried that the individuals calling for salary cuts and wage freeze are all employers in one way or another and one wonders who they are speaking for.

“While we agree that the economic situation in the country is abnormal with 92 percent of the Government revenue being channeled towards recurrent expenditure, we do not think that cutting salaries would remedy the situation.”

Mr Moyo said wages are averaging between $150 and $450 a month for most workers while the poverty datum line is above $500 adding that there is no sanity in proposing to cut such earnings.

He said Government must first get rid of thousands of ghost workers and other leakages which are milking the treasury.

Mr Moyo’s comments revive the scrutiny once placed on heads of parastatals barely a year ago for allegedly scooping massive benefits that were bleeding the state of millions of dollars annually.

It also gives substance to the workers’ argument that it is the top managers who have been getting huge perks who should be targeted first.

Revelations were made last year that only 3 000 individuals sitting on boards or acting as chief executives and senior managers of the country’s parastatals gobbled about $600 million in salaries since 2009.

It was also revealed that the total 2013 wage bill for senior management and boards was approximately $133 million.

In addition, Auditor-General, Ms Mildred Chiri, indicated in her executive summary for Government ministries 2013 audit report that 22 ministries out of 33 abused funds, flouted procurement procedures among other ills.

Ms Chiri added that her audit revealed significant variances totaling about $409 million between the Exchequer Account and the Public Finance Management Systems (PFMS) records.

Government, like Mr Pasi rightly put out, has also created redundant funds administered outside treasury, making them prone to misappropriation.

All these revelations further compound the workers’ submissions that while reducing the employment costs is key to national growth, Government should first put its house in order before thinking of cutting salaries. While prices have been declining, experts say the drop has not been significant enough to influence salary cuts.