No double salary, no increase...says Finance Minister
Salaries to be reviewed in 2009
By VonDez Phipps
Reporter-SKNVibes.com
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Minister of Finance Dr. the Hon. Timothy Harris
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BASSETERRE, St. Kitts – THE Federations’ civil servants are highly likely to enter the New Year without an increase in salary or the long-awaited double salary, due to major financial commitments the government has made during this year.
In an exclusive interview with SKNVibes, Minister of Finance Dr. the Hon. Timothy Harris made it clear that given the country’s fiscal situation, an increase in salary of civil servants or a Christmas bonus is not even contemplated and would not be a possibility for this year.
“In September, we gave civil servants a 7.5 percent increase in salaries retroactive from January. It covered pensioners and non-established workers and ran us up to $EC1M! It would therefore be unreasonable for the government to provide further gratuitous payments to civil servants. At this point in time there has been no indication of such an increase and there has also been no sign of a double salary.”
Dr. Harris however noted that the government would be assessing the working environments of civil servants with the aim of improving working conditions in 2009.
“In keeping with our commitments to provide satisfactory working conditions, the working conditions will be reviewed through an exercise in which we [the government] are in discussions with overseas consultants. The review will cover job classification, job descriptions, wages and salaries.
“Pilgrim and Associates out of Barbados performed a preliminary review and executed a comparative analysis of public and private sectors, relative to the cost of living, and are expected to give recommendations. In 2009, we would be guided by these recommendations to ensure that civil servants are working under satisfactory conditions.”
Minister Harris stressed that in 2009 the government might be more prepared to make such a decision. ~~Adz:Right~~
