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AFC urges unions to seek 50 % salary increase to cushion cost of living woes

Aug 13, 2022 News -- Source -- https://www.kaieteurnewsonline...cost-of-living-woes/

– Says country heading for worst inflation rate in decades

By Zena Henry

Kaieteur News – With the Guyana Public Service Union (GPSU) and other workers’ representatives demanding respect for the right to collective bargaining and the need for these discussions in light of the high cost of living, the Alliance for Change (AFC) is advising unions to seek a maximum 50 percent increase. The party believes this is a reasonable ask given that inflation and government spending is on the rise.

GPSU President Patrick Yarde (centre) at head table, with Dawn Gardner to his right, and other union members

Weeks ago, the GPSU warned government about disrespecting their legal right to negotiate wages and salaries and the fact that this needed to happen as public servants and citizens in general were suffering under high living costs. They chided the government over cash grants, hampers and other relief assistance for selected groups, while ignoring the need to meet with the union to discuss increases for public workers.

Shadow Finance Minister, Juretha Fernandes reminded that in 2016, when the APNU+AFC regime had unveiled a budget of only $230B, the People’s Progressive Party, while in opposition had called for a 50 percent increase to be given to public servants. She said, “…certainly, with the allocations for 2022 now being $597.6B to date, negotiations should most certainly begin at a maximum of 50 percent increase.”

Fernandes explained that the party did predict that the inflation rate of 4.1 percent by the government would have surpassed that figure by July. The AFC member said that the Bureau of Statistics has confirmed their prediction as inflation from May to June of this year was reported at 1.7 percent, bringing the total inflation to 4.9 percent for the first half of 2022.The AFC member said that the party is once again predicting that by the end of 2022 “inflation will likely surpass eight percent [and] this would make 2022 the worst year of inflation in decades.”

Fernandes continued that the extreme rate of inflation requires immediate action to address the erosion of workers spending power across Guyana. She added that even with a $552.B budget, that was supplemented with a more than $44B provision, citizens still wait to see and feel the impact of what has been described as Guyana’s  largest and most transformational budget to date. The Shadow Finance Minister said that both the national budget and the supplemental financial paper failed to provide any relief to public servants. The party thus called on the government to immediately start collective bargaining with stakeholders “…for an inflation based-increase with a timeline of three months at maximum to be completed.”

During a press conference, GPSU President, Patrick Yarde had reminded government about the power public servants hold and warned them to treat workers better, unless they wanted to return to 1999 when workers caused the shutdown of public services by staying away from work.

The union President said that it was not taking certain steps because of the Covid-19 pandemic but did not rule out strike action if government continued to ignore the plight of public workers. To get the ball rolling, the GPSU on July 29, 2022 filed a court matter to force the government into collective bargaining so that the gains could be sought for public workers. Yarde had said that public servants are “starving”; that they were bringing their concerns and coming to the union with no money to buy meals or pay bus fares since their salaries have proven inadequate in the current scheme of things.

He said in some cases, the union would have to intervene in providing financial assistance to help workers. He said too, that certified nurses continue to be wooed by foreign institutions, with nursing assistants and their families now being drawn in. Yarde said the government is fully away of the situation, but is doing nothing about it.

Just days after the GPSU’s press conference, President Irfaan Ali promised to meet with the GPSU; and did so shortly after. It was said however, that the Head of State met with a GPSU representative, First Vice President, Dawn Gardener and called the meeting an engagement that sought to discuss public servant welfare. When contacted, Gardener opted not to reveal the contents of the union and president’s meeting but had stated earlier in the week that the body would be issuing a statement in relation to the engagement.

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Salaries of Cabinet ministers to rise by 50%

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Cabinet Ministers are to see their salaries rise by 50% in a move likely to generate criticism as public servants were given a small salary hike after having been promised a “significant” increase by the APNU+AFC government.

Minister of State Joseph Harmon yesterday said that he would make no apologies for the 50% salary increases to Cabinet ministers, arguing that it is well-deserved.

“I’m not going to make any apologies whatsoever for ministers getting an increase in salaries, they deserve it,” Harmon exclaimed at the National Cultural Centre.

The order for the increase was approved by the Minister of Finance Winston Jordan two days prior to being published in the Official Gazette on September 23, 2014.

The approval of the increases comes in the face of criticism when the matter was first floated in the public in July. Minister of Governance Raphael Trotman had denied at a post cabinet press briefing in early August that there would be any “astronomical” pay increases.

https://s1.stabroeknews.com/images/2015/09/harmonannounce-e1441642878719.jpg

Joseph Harmon

Trotman had said that there was a review in place to set salaries that would differentiate the variety of posts including junior ministers, senior ministers and vice presidents.

According to the Official Gazette, Cabinet ministers will now receive $10,439,124 annually, a 50% increase from what was previously stated in the Principal Act. Also enjoying a 50% increase will be the Speaker of the National Assembly who will remain on par with Cabinet ministers as well as the Leader of the Opposition. Their monthly earnings will be just under $870,000 from the $579,000 monthly under the previous administration.

Vice Presidents, other than the PM, are to be paid $11,135,064 per annum.

Junior Ministers of Government will earn $8,346,492, an over 16% increase from the annual salary of a Cabinet minister under the former administration who was earning $6,959,412 annually.

The Prime Minister, Moses Nagamootoo will now receive $20,580,000 annually, an over $2M increase from what was previously stipulated in the Principal Act, taking his monthly salary to over $1.7M.

Members of Parliament without a designation will see a 20% salary increase, taking their annual salaries from $2,002,116 to $2,402,532. Parliamentary Secretaries and the Chief Whip will earn over 12% more, taking their salaries from $3,336,876 and $2,384,328 to $3,753,984 to $2,682,360 respectively.

The Deputy Speaker will now earn $2,702,880, just under a $300,000 annual increase.

The Gazette stated that the Attorney General and the Chancellor will earn the same annual salary and no change was made.

While in opposition, APNU and the AFC had heavily criticised what they termed “fat cats” with “upper salaries”. Now in government, when asked to justify the increase yesterday, Harmon said that “the ministers of government now justify an increase. The salary of a minister, a senior minister is five hundred and sixty something thousand a month. That is money I paid to one of my attorneys that works for me when I was in private practice. Why should I be working for that?”

Harmon appeared agitated during the questions and reporters were unable to clarify if he supported the view that persons who willingly take up public office should expect to be paid at the level of the private sector.

Justifying the move by the government, he added “And if you look at the Cabinet you will find people of quality are there. Also I believe it is justifiable. You cannot have a situation like in the PPP where they were prepared to accept low salaries because they were thiefing money all over the place. We are not going to do that, our ministers will have to sign to a code of conduct, a code of service which requires them to act at a different level and so we have to pay people well if you want them to perform.”

That code of conduct is yet to be presented to the country more than four months into the life of the APNU+AFC government.

Critics have said that ministerial salaries should not be raised much beyond the increase which was paid out to public servants. Effective from July 1, 2015, the minimum salary in the public service was set at $50,000 per month while public servants who earned more will receive a 5% salary increase plus an additional $5,000 monthly as of the same date.

In an interview with Stabroek News in May, Finance Minister Winston Jordan had said that the new government was looking to increase public servants’ salaries by 10% in keeping with the APNU+AFC promise in its elections manifesto of a significant hike. The initial increase that was being mentioned for public servants was 20%.

FM

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