Dear Editor,
None of the well informed framers of the contentiously discussed 2024 Budget has focused on updating salary scales. The reason being that compensation, whether for Public Servants or Teachers, is no longer earned, since there are no performance standards for the following Job Categories, mythical as they now are. The absence of Performance Evaluation may well be compounded by that of Job Evaluation both of which exercises have dropped out of the compensation management dictionary, if there is any. It has been a long while since there has been any reference to the concept of ‘increments’ – increasingly the delivery of ‘public service’ is by employees ‘Contracted’ in the above-mentioned categories for ‘Gratuity’ only.
Meanwhile, so-called ‘Pensionables’ Cash ‘Grants’ not necessarily annually which compute eligible pension at age fifty-five years. Further employment eligibility must therefore be on contract, or subject to a political appointment. There is therefore hardly any comparability between Guyana’s Government employees and their CARICOM counterparts. How then will the vaunted regional projects be sustained, if indeed up to a pensionable level? In the meantime there may well be profound need to explore the contribution that the NIS could/must make in such a confused compensation environment. Neither the Public Service or Teachers’ Union is allowed any say. Medical employees are of course guaranteed hospitalisation.
Sincerely,
E. B. John
