The Industrial Court has issued an urgent interdict halting the government’s planned salary hike for certain public servants, following a legal challenge by the Five Plus One Cooperating Trade Unions.

The disputed pay increase was based on an agreement signed solely with the Botswana Landboards & Local Authorities Health Workers Union (BLLAHWU), but Judge Dr. Goodwil Makofi ruled it must not be implemented from the end of August 2025 onwards. Salaries for July 2025 are exempted if already processed.

The Five Plus One Unions which include BOPEU, BOSETU, NALCGPWU, BTU, BONU, and BDUaccused the government of bad faith in the negotiation process and exclusion from talks held on June 27, 2025. The judge agreed that the matter was urgent and ordered a rule nisi, returnable on August 14, 2025.

A key point of contention was the official record of the June 26 meeting. The unions argued that the minutes misrepresented events, particularly after they walked out. The court ordered the creation of two separate records to distinguish proceedings before and after their exit, along with corrections to inaccuracies and misleading language in the document.

Furthermore, the court questioned why government negotiators should not be held accountable for excluding the unions and instructed that formal talks resume within five days of the order using the amended minutes.