Gov’t not trampling on rights of workers, says financial secretary
FINANCIAL Secretary Darlene Morrison yesterday dismissed suggestions that the Government is trampling on the bargaining rights of public sector workers with its impending implementation of a four-year wage offer.
She was addressing a meeting of the Public Administration and Appropriations Committee (PAAC) of Parliament.
The increases for the four years are outlined in a ministry paper, which was tabled by Finance Minister Audley Shaw in the House of Representatives on Tuesday. News of the increases, which some major public service groups feel are being foisted on them, has led to teachers taking industrial action since the start of the week, and up to yesterday, forcing some schools to close their doors.
Morrison stressed to the PAAC that, while only 49 per cent of public sector groups have so far signed the offer, the right of the outstanding groups to negotiate is still in force. “I am not aware that we have breached anything. We have indicated that, where it is possible, the negotiations will continue.”
The proposed offer is five per cent in year one, two per cent in year two, four per cent in year three, and five per cent in year four. She told the committee that, while major groups such as teachers, the police and nurses have not settled, a number of other groups have “agreed” to the offer, but have not yet signed.
The groups that have settled are: the Jamaica Confederation of Trade Unions, enrolled nurses, junior doctors, and CASE, while those that the ministry says have agreed to the deal include probation officers, paramedics, dental surgeons, dental assistants, meteorological officers, nurse practitioners, legal officers, and medical consultants.
At the same time, Morrison noted that she could not definitively say whether this was the first time increases were being paid during ongoing negotiations, but that the action was being taken utilising for the first time provisions which were introduced into the fiscal responsibility framework in 2010.
— Alphea Saunders
She also emphasised to the committee that the Government had to give the increases before the end of the fiscal year (March 31) , or it would risk missing the International Monetary Fund target of public sector wages being no more than nine per cent of Gross Domestic Product by 2019.
“If we were to delay the payments that are actually due or would relate to the 17/18 fiscal year until next year we would be well below the nine per cent target. If we do not pay this year it means we would need to push those retroactive payments beyond next year; so it is an effort to ensure the employees are paid as early as possible,” she stated.
The financial secretary insisted that the bargaining rights of the groups which have not signed on to the offer, remain intact, and that this has been indicated to those groups.
The announcement of the implementation of the increases to the public sector despite the fact that some major groups have not signed on to the arrangement, has led to islandwide industrial action by public school teachers since Monday, forcing students to stay home and a significant number of schools to close their doors.
Opposition committee members made clear their concerns with what they insisted was a breach of the democratic rights of the workers, and contravention of the International Labour Organisation convention to which Jamaica is a signatory. They insisted that this position should be highlighted in the report, but settled on euphemised phrasing, following vehement protests by St Andrew East Rural Member of Parliament Juliet Holness and MP for South Trelawny Marissa Dalrymple Phillibert over the use of the word “breach”.