Public servants to get salary increase

THE GUYANA government has announced a seven per cent salary increase for public servants, retroactive to January 1 this year.

“I am pleased to announce now that your government will be paying an across-the-board increase of seven per cent to public servants, teachers, members of the disciplined services, constitutional office holders, as well as government pensioners,” senior minister in the Office of the President with responsibility for finance, Dr Ashni Singh, said during a broadcast late Thursday.

He said work will start immediately to ensure that it is processed and paid to eligible employees together with their December salary and in time for the festive Christmas season.

The ruling People Progressive Party administration had promised to increase public servants’ salaries by 50 per cent in its first term in office, a commitment that was recently made by President Dr Irfaan Ali and Vice-President Bharrat Jagdeo.

Singh said that instructions were given to immediately implement the measures and that frontline workers will be receiving a special payout to be made by the end of December.

“Your government has set aside an amount of $400 million for a special 2021 payout to be made to frontline workers in the health sector who have continued to face extenuating circumstances in the daily discharge of their duties, as our country and the world continue to battle the ravages of the COVID-19 pandemic,” Singh said in the broadcast.

He said the government will be rectifying the irregularities in salary scales across positions in the public sector. Provisions for this, the minister said, will be made in Budget 2022.

“For example, a new graduate with a degree in environmental science might be earning GUY$120,000 (one Guyana dollar=US$0.004 cents) in one agency, while a new graduate with an identical degree in environmental science might be earning GUY$190,000 in another agency.”

“Government will be taking steps next year to reduce these inconsistencies, by making suitable adjustments to salaries in order to improve the parity and consistency with which persons with comparable qualifications are paid,” he said.

Singh said that the government has set aside an estimated GUY$400 million for a special 2021 payout to be made to frontline workers in the health sector who have continued to face extenuating circumstances in the daily discharge of their duties.

“The details of this payout will be announced shortly, and the payout will be made to eligible employees before the end of December 2021.”