Senators Francis Chandler and Sir Geoffrey Cave have been quoted in the media expressing concern that officers of government should by their decisions and policy exercise financial restraint. Senator Chandler suggested as an example ministers of government from a small developing country like Barbados should not be travelling first class on trips overseas. She also observed that many public officers seem to be engaged in unnecessary travel. The discussions was spurred in the Upper House against the need for government to be fiscally prudent as it struggles to manage a huge deficit on current account.
There is merit in what the Senators have been reported to have said. Common practice in the private sector is for all employees to share in the pain during times of a financial challenge. So that a wage freeze, no bonus payments, layoffs, redundancies, cancellation of perks are all options which are considered and often times implemented based on the severity of the hardship. It seems highly disingenuous of government to ask Barbadians to exercise financial discipline and the government has not demonstrated by the actions of officers of central government that they are prepared to do the same. Even if materially it may seem insignificant in the context of managing the national budget, the action would be seen as a government which is prepared to show empathy for the people it serves.
The discussion is all the more relevant based on a BU source that there is at least one government department the employees have not been paid since January this year. This state of affairs seems all the more immoral when judged against the harsh economic times which are prevailing. They are mortgages to be paid, children to be supported and all the other responsibilities of a family which require money to sustain. We have withheld the name of the department to protect the employees from the possibility of victimization.
BU acknowledges that we are confronting economic challenges and the government maybe doing all that it can to manage the national budget. The government is on record stating its commitment to maintaining employment in the public sector. If that promise is to be believed then stories that public officers are not being paid brings a different perspective to the issue.
What would help to deal with the pain of public officers not being paid is a government which is prepared to demonstrate by its actions they empathize. Let them start by implementing Senator Chandler’s suggestion of giving up first class seats on their many sojourns overseas. Perhaps donating 5% of their salary to charities on the island ?
Wishful thinking we know!
The blogmaster invites you to join the discussion.