Public Service Senior Managers differ from Negotiating Team on allowances, support allowances for public officers not ministers

Published by BBN Staff at May 4, 2021

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Posted: Tuesday, May 4, 2021. 4:39 pm CST.

By Benjamin Flowers: President of the Association for Public Sector Senior Managers (APSSM), Sharon Frazer, said today that, despite the Joint Union Negotiating Team (JUNT) calling for the removal of all allowances from government ministers as a part of cost-saving measures, the APSSM believes that there should have been a distinction between allowances that some public officers get and those given to Ministers.

Frazer said that the APSSM was cautious with regard to allowances because there are some public officers who managed to get them due to their years of service.

“If you plan to go after allowances you’re talking about people who have given up…30 years of service, at least 5 years plus of service who have worked towards getting those allowances; compared to Ministers who come in and the least they would serve is a five-year term and they end up with all these allowances that would have taken us years to get,” Fraiser said.

She added that apart from senior managers, some public officers get allowances, such as commuting allowance, to enable them to conduct government business. She also pointed out that on occasion, public officers need to supplement these allowances with their own money because the amount given is not sufficient for the task assigned.

Despite her difference in opinion, the JUNT is calling for all Ministers, CEOs, and Heads of Departments to relinquish allowances such as telephone, vehicle maintenance, entertainment, and housing.

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