Central Bank Staff will reject 2% imposed on them

Dec 13, 2018 Letters

Dear Mr. Editor

In June 2015, the Central Bank issued a circular stating, “the payment of increments based on performance appraisal of staff will be made effective in 2016 and payment of ‘across the board’ salary increase by the Government of Guyana will also benefit the staff of the Bank of Guyana”.
However, in 2015, staff received 5% in addition to government increase of $5000. Subsequently, in 2016 onwards, a 2% had been imposed on all staff, which blatantly ignored the circular, which was issued in 2015 to the Bank.
The Management of the Central Bank has never communicated to staff the reason(s) why the ‘across the board’ increase given to public servants would not be paid to us as was intended. The proposed 2% increase for 2018 will be taxed. This brings us to the point, that we are categorically deemed public servants conveniently.
Mr. Minister of Finance, if we are not public servants, why are we treated like them conveniently? Earlier this year our vacation allowance, half month, was taxed for the first time in the history of the Bank. All our directives come from the Ministry of Finance, why then we are not allowed to benefit from across the board Government increases?
The Bank’s staff needs clarification from this government as to why we have been treated unfairly concerning our increase in salary. It must be noted that the performance appraisal/ (ACR) increment is based on a grading system and not all staff members are equally graded fairly by their Supervisor or Director.
This often results in staff members being taken before a review board because of poor grades, which result in meagre amounts given as increment especially the janitorial staff, handymen and lower level clerical staff.
It has been years now that the Central Bank has taken a downwards approach to staff. Decisions are made without a general consensus as it relates to staff welfare. Everything is done using a big stick approach and we the staff are fed-up and frustrated. Staff are being de-motivated by the nepotism showed in the Bank.
Christmas is a time of sharing and joy, but at the Central Bank this year, it will not even have a little decoration in the public area to lift the spirit of staff unless we do it ourselves, because management will not pay to decorate the Bank.
We would like to have restored our tax free half-month vacation allowance and let our Board of Directors make the decision on our salary increases.
Mr. Editor, if the Government, Minister Jordan and the Governor do not please our staff and treat us with dignity, we the Central Bank staff are prepared to stand in solidarity and protest our rights in the streets of Georgetown, until our needs are adequately and speedily met by the Government to grant our increases, review our salary scale and remove the tax from our vacation allowances.
If we cannot be happy, the public servants will not receive their increase and we will all have a gloomy Christmas.

FROM CONCERNED STAFF

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