Rise in retirements causes change in demographic of public service
The retirement rate in the BVI public service is said to be climbing and has caused a change in the overall demographic of the workforce.
Premier Andrew Fahie has said the average rate of retirement now stands at 2.5 percent, which translates to roughly 67 employees retiring annually.
And with the retirement numbers increasing each fiscal year, more young professionals are now entering the workforce to fill those gaps.
However, largely unattractive remuneration packages has now caused another problem for the public service.
“The workforce is comprised with younger skilled professionals who are more likely to exit the organisation when the pay factor is not competitive,” Fahie said in the House of Assembly on Thursday.
This part of the reason his administration has moved to have the salary of all public servants reviewed.
According to the Premier, this review is long overdue.
Only 17% of gov’t workers happy with their pay
In fact, a 2018 engagement survey of government workers found that only 17 percent of respondents were satisfied with their pay and benefits in the public service.
“Sixty-two percent of [public] officers expressed that they do not consider their salaries to be reasonable or reflective of their performance,” Premier Fahie said while citing the survey which interviewed 28 percent of the overall public service.
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They might want to invest in a couple of barges
You people in the UK blogging trying to push you all worthless agenda but everyone with sense know that nothing was wrong with the barges. Go investigate the two houses the former top pig man buy.
You’re saying Fahie has two houses? Who knew?
well pay them a proper salary but DO NOT LET THEM RETIRE after 25yrs of service with a full package, this is why so many retire and then open businesses they are still getting most of their government salary and still working, retirement, means just that!
You are an idiot. Politicians work 8 consecutive years in office and get full pension but we work 25 and not full pension….we have to work 33 1/3 year for full pension. In some areas we have no upward motility. No room for growth so we feel stuck. You have your Masters and a person with an associate gets more money than you and you work harder than that person. Too much curry favor in this place. In some professions Government does not pay you for your Masters. Tired of this system and no I am not an expat so don’t tell me go back where I come from because A here me from. Oh you work for the Government so you have no freedom of speech only when they fishing for your vote. This place needs to change.
The system to give politicians full pension after 8 years needs to be stopped, what nonsense with them not even working full time.
Perhaps you meant “mobility” rather than “motility “.
You’re welcome.
Locals dont say “ah here me from” so where in hades did you come from?
Establishments do not pay people only based on their degree, It is the position and level of responsibilities. Some people’s qualifications are more that what their position requires and some people do not have the right qualification for their position.
This has been long overdue. It’s no secret that in Government the higher paying jobs are given to those who are curry favored rather than skilled. There are those who have qualifications and experience, yet the salaries being received reflect the Flintstone era. While I applaud the effort, I must ask…..where will the funds come from? What income has the Government generated within the last 18 months minus the months that we were in lock down? The territory is cash strapped. We thank and applaud you for the ‘gesture’ for that is all it can be at this point. While some of us are not happy, we must factor in the bigger picture. How many persons in the entire community are hungry? Jobless? In need? Can we focus on that first and remedy the other things at a later time? Priorities, priorities, priorities. We are our Brother’s Keeper so let’s make sure that we are all eating first please. Again, I commend you for the initiative but now is not the time.
I appreciate this move by the Government to support the review of the salary and job classification of the public service. It is timely.
Vote buying at the taxpayers expense.
What he should be doing is looking to modernize and streamline the 19th century bloated bureaucracy that is the BVI Civil Service.
And, speaking of 19th century…
BVI needs to get rid of those white wigs they all wear. Didn’t their colonial slave masters wear them?
Jus sayin
Agreed
Slave masters didn’t wear white wigs. Judges did. Do some research.
This will also affect succession in government. They already have officers who seem to refuse to retire or only the “who you knows” moving up.
With increased pay they will now try to work to 100 years old. I understand fully why persons are doing their 25 and just retiring.
Boo boo…
It’s called government SERVICE. Dear Leader is looking to pay more to government workers, controlling the voters, and controlling YOU. This is how socialism operates.
If everyone is employed by the government, then it can dictate policy easily as the citizen is directly affected and dependent on its teat.
But carry on. And expect to pay more…
There’s no justice in the public service. We are being dictated to by the governor and his deputy. SLAVERY!
In confused. Are you saying you want slavery or are against it?
NEEDED
“Sixty-two percent of [public] officers expressed that they do not consider their salaries to be reasonable or reflective of their performance”…..Human nature at work here..of course they think they are underpaid. No need to adjust though…nowhere else they can go…
My guess is that 100% of those employed outside government consider the civil servants to be rude, lazy and incompetent.
Government salary don’t match the qualifications and experience. Having a Bachelor’s/Masters Degree and experience and collecting less than $3,000.00 is a turn off.
So why stay there and earn that? If you are worth more, you go out and seek MORE!
Please stop with the smoke and mirrors. Just tell us how many civil servants are unhappy with their pay.
Now that we see the cost of living going up,I think its only right that all these businesses especially those who are increasing there prices, should increase salaries as well.
Just remember when public service employees get a pay increase the politicians also gets an equivalent percentage increase.
Think they taking everyone for a ride.
This is ALL GAMES! Fahie wants to have the Civil Service on his side for when the COI gets into high gear and for next elections.
Education system and school in complete shambles but here he is pandering with bulls**t. Those of us with private businesses that are struggling were told be happy we have life but somehow the civil servants are special and instead of being happy that they still have full time employment, they get attention because they’re not happy with pay? Anybody with sense knows this is all political bulls**t.
$400 million united states dollars. Who is going to pay for this?
There will soon be need to worry about any of that as there will be greater issues affecting every Black person in this Territory.
Our lives, as we have known them, poltically, economically, socially, emotionally and psychologically are coming to an abrupt end, and it all has to with money, who has it and who should not have it.
The imperialist thinks that the Black man should not. He thinks that the Territory has become to rich for the Black man to be in conrtol, and so he is coming to take that control away from him. It is that simple. He choses to stick his head in the sand and think differently is in for a rude kick in the behind.
They are going to walk right in and take control finances of this country from right out of the hands of the government and people.
Stay tuned, you will see.
Hi Doomds Day. Time for your medicine. Be a good boy and you can stay up to watch Sesame Street.
Studying Mien Kemph and the the rise of Stalin, Hitler and others of similar ilk. Sesame would be quite boring.
time to increase the payment to the retirees
The politicians victimize as much as they can but with the crappy pay people opt to stay and leave as soon as they can get a pension and move on.
I can tell you what caused the change in the demographics of the Civil Service and it is not retirement. Well, it can be to a certain extent, but not fully.
Since Mrs. Magdalene Rhymer saw it fit to turn the reigns over to the young people who migrated back from the United States knowing nothing of the demographics of the Service and caring nothing about the demographics, all kinds of issues arose. They were young, energetic and on a mission towards a world class Civil Service. What they got? All the sensible, qualified, patient and hardworking people ran for their lives. The HR Department did nothing to manage the Service. Nothing. When you have persons acting for 12 years and up, and some temporary for 10 years and up, awaiting to become permanent and pensionable, where are the Managers of the Service? When you have heads of Departments walking around and making decisions to the detriment of their department and the brightest and the best are leaving the Department and no one takes notice, where are the Managers?
What I saw are these bright ones migrated home, who really care nothing about the Service, but their upward mobility. They are doing well, because they are talkers, but those of us they met in the system are stagnant and no serious decisions made on anything human resources-wise.
If you ask me, if Mrs. Rhymer had handed that baton to someone like Mrs. N. Chalwell, we would have had a different Service now. Why? Well I only have to say Mrs. Crabbe and Mrs. Weston. They were old school and not big talkers, but they cared about the human resource they were managing.
You cannot only follow the rule book and make sure you move. As human resources, you are managing humans, your resource, and you have to use that beating heart in your chest when doing so. Not come home after growing up in the big USA and build yourself up and simply ignoring everybody else.
So what the brightest and best does, bide their time until they can retire and get the hell out of dodge first chance which is 25 years. No reason to stay. The money is less in some cases, and the Managers are mean as hell as they have no idea what “human resources” means.
The last thing this country need is a set of “skullywags”, determining salaries based on political affiliation!
We need an independent, free from politics-kind of board, that will oversee this process!
If this is not a part of that mandate, I cannot be convinced that all remunerative greivances, can be justly acted upon!