Mbhazima Shilowa | Public sector wage negotiation stalemate: What can be done about it?

A national public sector strike could be on the cards if the government and trade unions don't meet each other halfway. But, as Mbhazima Shilowa writes, it seems both parties are entrenched in their positions.

A strike by public sector workers seems inevitable unless there is a change of negotiation tactics by the parties involved. So far, the trade unions and the government seem to have dug themselves into a hole. While it is often the case for parties' opening bargaining positions to be far apart, the current opening positions leave little room for manoeuvre. 

Looking in from the outside, the trade unions' opening demands seem oblivious of the dire economic situation the country faces and its impact on the fiscus. A closer look, however, indicates that there is logic in the perceived madness.