Delay In Wage Increase For Jamaica’s Public Sector Workers

KINGSTON, Jamaica CMC — Although a two-year agreement has been signed between the government and the Jamaica Confederation of Trade Unions (JCTU) that covers salaries and other benefits for public sector workers, there has been a setback in an increase to salaries.

The JCTU had hoped that the implementation of the agreement would be in place next week, in time of the payout of monthly salaries, however JCTU Vice President, Helene Davis-Whyte said the new target date is next month as the Ministry of Finance has not finalized the actual salary scale.

“The unions have been in discussions with the Ministry of Finance  with a view of trying to settle on an implementation date…without the salary scale, the costing cannot be done to determine when the implementation date is likely to be.”

The agreement consists of a J$4,000 (One Jamaica dollar =US$0.004 cents) increase across the board retroactive from April and fringe benefits for the first year.

The remaining three per cent will be paid in the second year.

Davis-Whyte said the challenge surrounds how the increase will be calculated.

The agreement, signed earlier this month covers salaries and other benefits for the period April 2015 to March 2017 for public workers.