Jamaican public sector employees to get ‘modest’ wage increase
/ Our Today
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Public sector employees are to receive a “very, very modest” increase in salary this year, according to Finance Minister Dr Nigel Clarke.
Clarke made the revelation as he tabled the 2021-2022 Estimates of Expenditure in Parliament on Thursday (February 18).
“After factoring annual increments, which are a part of the cost of public sector compensation, a very, very modest increase in wages has therefore been programmed for 2021-2022,” said Clarke.
The modest increase in wages comes amid the announcement that the Government would be postponing, for a year, the implementation of a compensation restructure for the public sector which was set to commence in the upcoming fiscal year.
“It is critical … that whatever resources we can corral we use this year on vaccines, the distribution of vaccines, and our social and economic recovery, inclusive of jobs and social support for those who have been hardest hit.”
Dr Nigel Clarke, minister of finance and the public service
According to Clarke, while a thorough review and examination of public sector compensation was completed within the December 2020 timeframe, the Government did not have the resources to begin the implementation.
Clarke blamed the delay in implementation on the economic fallout from the COVID-19 pandemic.
“We have undergone a thorough review and examination of public sector compensation, as we promised we would and, we have done it within the timeframe that we promised we would- by December of 2020. But … given the massive impact of the pandemic, we do not have the resources to begin the implementation of the review and finance our recovery at the same time,” explained Clarke.
“Furthermore, it is critical … that whatever resources we can corral we use this year on vaccines, the distribution of vaccines, and our social and economic recovery, inclusive of jobs and social support for those who have been hardest hit,” added Clarke
Clarke said that, during the period for which implementation is being delayed, the Government will be working to fine tune the parameters of the compensation restructure, advancing a timeline of the next financial year for the commencement .
The finance minister reiterated that while 130,000 job losses have been recorded as of July 2020, none of them have come from the public sector.
Clarke added that the nation’s public sector employees were fortunate in comparison to their overseas counterparts, some of whom were left exposed to the economic hardships created by the pandemic due to job losses
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