( Real News Antigua ) Chairman of the United Progressive Party (UPP) D.Gisele Isaac is
asking exactly when public-sector workers will be getting their
promised 9 percent increase, since no official word has been given,
so far, by the Government.
The Gaston Browne Administration has justified hiking the Antigua
and Barbuda Sales Tax (ABST) from 15 to 17 percent by saying it
will fund the increase in salaries and wages.
And while that tax increase –among others – came into effect on
January 1, 2024 – the Government is yet to confirm that the pay
raise will be implemented at the end of January, as expected .
Further, Isaac notes that none of the workers’ bargaining agents –
including the Antigua and Barbuda Public Service Association – has
said whether they will be getting the 9-percent increase in one go …
or split over a period.
She says she would like to hear from the unions regarding this issue
– and not only from the Cabinet, who has declared only that a
wonderful Christmas had been enjoyed by all residents on account
of the “free” meats it had distributed.