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JCSA President Techa Clarke-Griffiths and Minister of Finance & The Public Service Dr Nigel Clarke
The Jamaica Civil Service Association is warning that its more than 30-thousand members are prepared to shut down the government service if the Ministry of Finance continues to delay settling outstanding salary related issues.
The eleven unions under the umbrella of the Jamaica Confederation of Trade Unions wrote to the Minister of Finance last Friday, demanding a meeting to discuss the outstanding items, within the next ten days.
JCSA President Techa Clarke-Griffiths, who is a member of the Confederation, told Radio Jamaica News that the civil servants are displeased with the long delay in settling the issues surrounding their benefits.
Accordingly, she said all the members of the Association are "restive and ready!"
Among the outstanding matters still to be addressed, she said are reinstatement of passenger mileage, retroactive mileage payments, payment of increments, clarification for subsistence, overtime policy, uniform policy, passenger mileage etc.
"They (members of the political directorate) have received their payments; we're asking for ours and we're asking for equity and fairness," she stressed.
Mrs Clarke-Griffiths warned that the 30 thousand members of the JCSA are ready to to take action to register their displeasure with the stance taken by the Ministry of Finance & The Public Service.
Minister responds
In response to the JCSA,s ultimatum, Finance Minister Dr Nigel Clarke said the threat of a disruption in the public service was unnecessary, given the extent of progress made during discussions between his ministry and the Jamaica Confederation of Trade Unions.
The JCSA is a member of the Confederation.
Dr Clarke, speaking with Radio Jamaica News, on Sunday evening, said the government and the JCTU have been in discussions on matters relating to conditions of employment and benefits, and according to him, the Confederation is to respond to the ministry on an updated proposal from the last meeting.
He explained that in June 2023, his ministry met with the JCTU "and provided a set of proposals on these matters, and they wrote back in response five months later, in November 2023."
That was followed by another meeting in December 2023, during which the parties came to "eight of nine items in their written response."
Furthermore, he said during that meeting the ministry's team provided an updated proposal on that one outstanding item, "which they were to consider and get back (to the ministry on)."
He said, given the level of progress made during discussions on this last item, a disruption or threat of disruption "would be an unnecessary escalation that the public must see in the context of a competition for resources."
Against that background, Dr Clarke said his ministry could not afford to allocate resources based on who shouts loudest.
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