The Tribune

By JADE RUSSELL

Tribune Staff Reporter

jrussell@tribunemedia.net

AFTER Labour Minister Pia Glover-Rolle announced plans to introduce bi-weekly pay early next year, Bahamas Public Services Union (BPSU) president Kimsley Ferguson said he was baffled by the comments, arguing that union leaders had previously been informed the government was not presently pursuing this change.

Mrs Glover-Rolle’s update on the bi-weekly pay initiative came yesterday on the sidelines of the National Tripartite Council’s annual event.

Her comments follow Prime Minister Philip Davis’s announcement in June that bi-weekly salaries would be introduced as part of a series of public sector reforms. However, the announcement was poorly received by some public servants, who criticised it as an “ill-thought-out plan”.

Explaining the initiative yesterday, Mrs Glover-Rolle said bi-weekly pay would help align the public service with the private sector.

She said the shift would provide public servants with greater “liquidity” by increasing their cash flow through more frequent payments.

When asked when bi-weekly payments might begin, Mrs Glover-Rolle said: “We anticipate that early in 2025 we will start to see a pilot or a rollout of that bi-weekly. We’re still in consultation, still in the phase of practical implementation of our system, and we are hoping that can be on board early in 2025.”

In response, Mr Ferguson told The Tribune he was confused, explaining that Bahamas Union of Teachers (BUT) president Belinda Wilson recently received a letter from Financial Secretary Simon Wilson indicating that bi-weekly payments were not currently being pursued.

“Prior to any application of a bi-weekly-based cycle, the government agreed in a communication from the Financial Secretary that they would meet first with the various stakeholders,” Mr Ferguson said.

“It baffles me to wonder how Mrs Glover-Rolle could go on the media and say stuff like that,” he added.

Attempts by The Tribune to obtain the letter from Mrs Wilson were unsuccessful by press time.