South Africa's COSATU labour federation said on Friday negotiators had failed to reach a deal with the government to end a three-week public servants' strike.
"The majority of Public Service unions ... agreed that they cannot at this stage sign any agreement with the employer," the Congress of South African Trade Unions (COSATU) said in a statement after talks with government representatives.
But the unions said the government had tabled a new offer and they would have 21 days to consider it. They said union representatives would meet on Sunday to begin this process.
"In the meantime, the strike continues," COSATU President Willie Madisha told the SAPA news agency. The COSATU statement dashed hopes of a quick resolution to the strike, which has crippled schools and hospitals across the country and revealed stark divisions between the ruling African National Congress (ANC) and its labour allies.
But it left open the possibility that the government's latest offer, which includes a pay rise of 7.5 percent for 2007/08, could be accepted by union members as early as Sunday. Unions, late on Wednesday, cut their demand to 9 percent. The government hoped discussions over the weekend would bring an end to the stayaway.
"We will be in discussion with the unions within the next two days to talk about the suspension of the strike," Public Service and Administration Minister Geraldine Fraser-Moleketi told reporters.
"We are beyond negotiations at the moment. We have signed already and we are waiting for the unions to sign. As soon as there is a 50 percent majority of the unions that have signed then the new deal will take effect."
If accepted, wages will rise by 7.5 percent with effect from July 1, and by CPIX inflation plus 1 percent from July 1, 2008. Housing allowances would also increase while some employees, such as teachers and nurses, will receive sector-specific increases.
South Africa's economy - the continent's biggest - is booming but civil servants complain their wages barely keep pace with inflation, currently at 6.3 percent. Civil servants remain defiant, but the mass action has taken a heavy economic toll on their lives and some South Africans say they have lost loved ones because state hospitals are paralysed.
While some unions may accept the offer, others may stick to their demands. A South African labour court ruled on Friday that police officers cannot join the strike but said non-essential staff in the force could take part in the job boycott, which unions bill as the largest in post-apartheid South Africa.
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