PM Davis: We continue to make increases to secure competitive pay for public servants… The recommended salary increase will begin during this fiscal year…
NASSAU| Celebrating his government’s record signing of some 30 Industrial agreement since coming to office, PM Philip Davis KC slammed the opposition’s plan to fire public servants announced in Parliament last week during the Budget Debate 2024/25.
Davis confirmed, “Those thirty trade union agreements raised salaries across the public service, including much-needed raises for the uniform branches, teachers, and nurses.
“Then, we held the first public service-wide promotional exercise in over eight years for over one thousand clerical staff, putting millions of additional dollars in their pockets.
“In the meantime, we also promoted over one thousand Bahamians who were on the promotions backlog, and processed hundreds of additional general and executive promotions.”
Taking plans to further enhance salaries for public servants the Prime Minister said, “Those gains for public servants were meaningful — but we aren’t done yet.
“The review we will conduct this year on public servant salaries will ensure that we continue to make increases to secure competitive pay for public servants.
“We have allocated sufficient funding to ensure that the review can immediately be followed by action. The recommended salary increase will begin during this fiscal year.”
Exposing the plans for public servants by those in the Pintard FNM, the Prime Minister said, “I was shocked to learn that there were members opposite who seemed to have a problem with the allocations we made to facilitate this effort.
“I was shocked until the Leader of the Opposition said on page 14 of his speech that he intends to radically simplify and streamline the public service bureaucracy that he says continues to burden Bahamian residents and businesses costing untold millions of dollars in lost productivity and petty corruption.
“Here we go again, calling Bahamians corrupt and calling our public servants a burden.
“Let’s be honest, when you use words like ‘radically simplify’ – this strikes me as a fancy poetic way to say you’re planning on reducing the public service. It sounds to me like you’re announcing the FNM’s intentions to come for public servants’ jobs.”
The PM added, “In this administration, we don’t view our public servants as a burden. That’s why we promoted them and raised their salaries when the FNM didn’t.”
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