Government Signals Sanctions for Underperforming Civil Servants
St John’s, Antigua and Barbuda — Public servants who consistently underperform or abuse sick leave entitlements could soon face disciplinary action, including possible termination, as part of the government’s renewed focus on accountability within the public sector.
The issue was a central point of discussion during this week’s Cabinet meeting, which included a special session with permanent secretaries, heads of department, and union representatives. According to Director General of Communications Maurice Merchant, the Prime Minister expressed deep concern over reports of chronic absenteeism and a lack of disciplinary follow-through.
“There have been instances where individuals have been absent for close to 100 days in a single year,” Merchant revealed during Thursday’s post-Cabinet media briefing. “The Prime Minister made it clear that this cannot continue and that public service must be reformed to reflect the standards of the private sector.”
The Cabinet underscored the importance of fostering a culture of performance and accountability, with Merchant noting that the government aims to eliminate the perception that public sector jobs are immune to consequences.
Heads of department and senior officials were reminded of their legal authority to act against persistent non-performance and were urged to resist political interference or perceived protections.
An outcome document is being developed as part of an ongoing process to modernise the public sector. The initiative also includes collaboration with the University of the West Indies and Harvard University to develop mandatory training modules in public administration, which may become a requirement for promotion.
Officials say the reforms are aimed at ensuring better service delivery to the public and maintaining morale among high-performing civil servants.
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Well we’ll,this government want public servants to carry thus country on their shoulders and the government itself is under performing our expectations……………When we have our kids coming out of college and secondary schools with 10 plus subjects why must we as parents sit and see our kids can’t get a job in this country unless it’s in the hotel sector as maids or bartenders in2025………What progress or economic powerhouse are we building??Antigua is more like a economic poor house……………Antigua is more like in the 80s presently plus with a dictator government
First, what about paying the people on time? Can anyone say if this is happening now? Second, providing proper working conditions? Third, how did they intend for people to actually be productive when they filled the agencies with persons whose only skill is waving a red flag? Are they now going to be disciplined? Look at Crump…worst roads in the Caribbean and he gets a transfer to work on a major part of our main industry. I’ll believe this when I see it.
I don’t understand these guys. I recall earlier this year visiting a PS and in conversation the told me that if he/she wanted to hire a cleaner to clean their ministry, the PS could not do so on their own but it had to go to and through Cabinet. So, these guys want to micromanage but at the same time want PSs to do their job! How can both situations be true?
Let me relate a story I heard years ago when I was a student in Barbados. The late PM Errol Barrow was a pilot and used to fly himself around. One night he arrived home and approached the Customs area. On seeing him the customs officer said, “Oh it’s you Skipper, move right along”. The PM upon hearing this said to the customs officer, “Sir, if you don’t go through my bags, you won’t have a job in the morning”. What he just did there Gaston was to make a civil servant realize that he must do his job regardless of whether it’s the PM or anyone else. That is leadership! In your case, instead of praising a civil officer for doing the right thing, you chided that civil servant for not allowing in some kind of shipment even though you admitted that something was missing. Further Gaston, you said that even though something was missing, the officer should have abided once a call from Minister Smith was received. This kind of nonsense is why the civil service is the way it is; not to mention the comrades that feel that they can do as they like irrespective of PS or any other senior civil servant, since they can always run to you if any attempt is made to rein them in. So your rhetoric is not likely to change anything, apart from instilling fear in the officers, because as the saying goes, “Satan cannot correct Sin”
Going forward I wait to hear you firing a minister who attempt to bully a PS or other civil servant for doing things the right way, regardless of political calculus. Trust me, I would have found a reason to believe you are serious about Civil Service reform. However, I won’t hold my breath.
If” public service must be reformed to reflect the standards of the private sector, then all Government functions needs to be resigned for the digital world in which we live.
Who is to be blamed if a Perminant Secretary abuses the system? Who does a Permanent Secretary report too?
Thousands of digital application are available to survey the performance of government workers.
With a annual medical exam which I cludes blood test among a few others.
Digital surveys are sent out to obtain feed back on the services received through the process and by the individuals from Doctors to clerical staff.
All this high level meeting are a waist of human resources. It will not produce any measurable results.
Full time,
Now we might see some good things happening in the government work force…
I do hope that you guys will also look into punctuality of public servants, some of them saunters into work way after 8 and leave promptly on or before 4:00/4:30 p.m
Is is about time!! We want to get paid, so we must work. We all complain that when we go to government offices that we cannot get anything done and that there is no one there to help us….not to mention the attitudes and rude behavior. I want to walk into a government office and get service. I am not there for a social call. Mind you yes it is about accountability, but it is also about working smart. Most of these jobs can be restructured to make them more efficient.
Sadly, I also think that the government workforce is too large in some places, and people can be shuffled around to other departments that need help.
Let’s get on this and make government services more efficient.
Well said an hope they implement it cause some jus go sign in an go drink. Beer an when time go back to sign out an don’t even go to work on fridays, jus come town dress up to collect pay to go party, superboy knows but is hushed by fish an lobster
“Heads of department and senior officials were reminded of their legal authority to act against persistent non-performance and were urged to resist political interference or perceived protections.”
“urged to resist political interference”? Really? And at the same time you are saying that the buck stop with the minister….? Is there a difference between political interference and ministerial direction?
” MR MINISTER, LET ME DO MY WORK”….COMMISSIONER POMPEY
If u start to pay civil servants properly then things might change. People working holidays and overtime and have to wait five , six , seven, eight years sometimes more for that money.
How you expect people to feel? A lot of people don’t want to be working for u all , it is just that they can’t do better, so they stay and take all the knock bout in these toxic work places.
This will require a totally new and different mindset to what has been accustomed too at every level of the public service. Let’s wait and see the government real commitment to demanding and enforcing stricter controls. There has also been a degradation and deterioration of behaviour in the public service where a known political hack uses social media to lambaste the Minister, the PS and other Senior Public Servants and for that he gets a nice lateral transfer from one Ministry to the next only to carry on with his same filth……ably facilitated by the intervention of the Honourable Prime Minister himself. There is always a reward in government for misbehavior especially if you sing the party anthem. To date this person has never been sanctioned. Charity begins at home.
I will say it again. We have over 15,000 civil servants, established and non-established. We need maximum 5,000. The rest have been employed by politicians as a reward for their vote. They do no work as there is no work for them to do. Some of them check in and then go to their real jobs. The PS’s are restricted as they cannot discipline a constituent. In any case, most of the PS’s are incompetent and have long passed their sell-by date but they have been in the system for 30 years and have moved up. The Ministries lack management and there is no accountability. We need total reform but it will never happen as the Ministers can use employment for votes and for their many side chicks.And it is not just ABLP. The UPP did the same. I have not touched on the poor facilities, buildings with mold, roofs leaking and broken down furniture which affect productivity for the few who want to work. Government has no plan for anything.
What are we going to do about our under
Performing government?
Any suggestions top dawg?
Eh! Any?
We have quite a few non performing ministers. Pixie🫣
Let’s start with caspret..
How bout that!
I pray for divine intervention for our nation
And deliverance from this wicked administration.
Some people living high other people catching hell.
Hear our cries oh lord!
Some of us cannot afford to ride a horse much less a camel🤨
Some of us can’t even to travel to theBahamas much less Egypt to experience other cultures.. ahaha
Antigua people truly fooley.
Our leaders must live well, meanwhile you don’t have clean water to drink..
Foolish people indeed!😅
Let’s not forget about this under performing two term ABLP government where in 2025 some Antiguans are still defecating in plastic bags and burying the contents.
Sickening in this day and age – and if that’s not a government that’s NOT under performing. I don’t know what is …
GEH RID AH DEM!!!