Health workers not satisfied with govt’s response, to proceed with sit-in

Hearth workers in Malawi have started their planned sit-in today, saying a response from the Malawi government does not address their grievances.

On Sunday, the government sent the National Organisation of Nurses and Midwives of Malawi (NONM) and the Physicians Associates’ Union of Malawi (PAUM) a response to their request to improve health sector-specific allowances.

The letter signed by Ian Chingwalu, the secretary for human resource management and development, indicates that the government already addressed the requests and has now come up with counter-offers in light of the prevailing resource constraints.

In the letter Chingwalu said; “I am delighted to inform you that the Government has committed to review Top-Up Allowance and Professional Allowance which shall be implemented following parliamentary approval in line with the constitutional requirements.”

However, NONM and PAUM find the response lacking, claiming the government has not shown interest in addressing their grievances soon.

In an update to the membership, the two bodies said “We are writing to inform you that we have received a response letter from the government dated June 7, 2024, with Ref No. HRM/RS/01. Unfortunately, this letter has failed to address with utmost specificity the pertinent issues and concerns presented to the government.”

NONM and PAUM confirmed that their scheduled sit-in will proceed as planned from Monday morning and stressed that it will only be called off once the government addresses their demands satisfactorily.

Meanwhile, health workers across the country have their downed tools, marking the first day of the sit-in. Some of the healthcare workers participating in this sit-in include; nurses, midwives, clinicians, clinical associates, clinical, officers, dental therapists, and medical assistants.