Gov’t looks to improve wages amid limited revenues
In the face of dwindling revenues for the government, Premier Dr Natalio Wheatley has promised to improve wages for public servants in the territory.
Premier Wheatley presented a reduced budget when compared with the figures announced last year and noted that the government has the difficult task of balancing important obligations like paying salaries and operating government with the need to control recurrent expenditure at sustainable levels.
He said this must be done even as his government looks to deliver on a holistic development agenda.
Premier Wheatley further shared that the government’s high cost of operations versus revenues collected leaves very little room to finance capital projects.
Despite this challenge, however, the Premier insisted that a major priority of his administration is improving wages.
“We have to confront the reality that under the current remuneration scheme, we have government employees who cannot afford to take care of their own basic needs with the salaries they are being paid – let alone take care of a family,” Premier Wheatley said.
Premier Wheatley disclosed that the average recurrent revenue for the last six years has been $364.05 million, but noted that the average recurrent expenditure has been a whopping $351.26 million, leaving a small surplus of just $12.98 million.
“This sounds like a lot of money, but this can only stretch so far when you consider that the average allocation for capital expenditure for the last six years has been $39.05 million – and that only covers a few major projects that are prioritised as urgent,” Dr Wheatley said.
The Premier pointed to the Price Waterhouse Coopers Compensation Review and Job Classification Report which he said shows that some public servants are below the recommended living wage, even as others are barely able to grab opportunities for upward social mobility, savings, settling debt, emergencies, and investments.
Dr Wheatley said, as estimated in the report, $23,719.80 per year is the lowest wage that persons need to live a decent life in the BVI. This represents the cost for a single-person household to live a basic but decent life in the BVI, inclusive of food, housing, education, healthcare, transportation, clothing and other essential needs for a family, including unexpected events.
According to the Premier, it is clear that the government has to increase revenues.
“We have to exercise our innovativeness to draw out more business from our existing revenue streams and we have to develop new ones,” Dr Wheatley said. “We also have to look at how we can lower the cost of government operations without compromising the quality and efficiency of service, and ensuring that our public officers are justly and fairly compensated for their work.”
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What kind of headline is that? Is the statement possible though?
The VIP Government does find money for travel, entertainment, stupid senseless projects, and all sort of other nonsense, but won’t pay the little people doing the work and making them look good a proper wage to survive on. Ridiculous!! cost of living in the BVI is through the roof and yet they expect persons to pay bills, feed their families and survive on pennies.
Maybe it is time for Government employees to pay into the retirement fund like all of us, then their pension will no longer be a budget-item. Maybe it is time to evaluate performance of Government employees and lay off the one’s not doing any work? Maybe then whoever will be paid by performance not by relationship status. Maybe then the people actually do work will get a higher pay.
He’s just pandering to his constituents for votes by promising public servants more compensation.
The correct resolution is to REDUCE the amount of overpaid public servants by introducing modern IT to the administration of the BVI government. But he’s to weak to actually do the right thing so we get to pay for his poor choices.
We in deep trouble!
The one in charge of civil servants in bed with them; one and the same. Doing civil servants injustice and where is the Governor?
interesting that they state what the lowest wage persons need to live a “decent” live $23,719 but there is no mention of what the current Actual wages are . What is the gap that we are trying to close?
Increase wages, and no talk of increasing productivity in profitable areas of your national portfolio and shaping up those that are under performing (which these A** Clowns know nothing about), means disaster. We are in trouble when a guy that can’t * a budget wants to tinker with the economy during these times. I trust that Premier Sl** Wande eventually figures it out, it may be 100 yrs after the fact but he will. Luarna in the Corna eventually finishes that bowl of oatmeal and finishes that nap. She still needs her second nappy afterwards but she’ll get there for at least one hr
Natalio and his team is bringing this country to ruin while the so call intelligent people who can do something sit back complain and do nothing .
You will tax the people who are already working for minimum wage?
Put back Smith as the Finance advisor
Frett is a yes mann
The Premier is beginning to behave like Andrew headstrong and with little experience
Well look what the finances of our country coming too?
So they have limited revenues, then why is the Premier and an entourage going to Dubai? They travel all over the world at tax payers expense but don’t come back with a damn thing to implement and imptove the territory. They see the world while we suffer.