OPINION: Cautious optimism over PM’s back pay announcement

Subject: Promises of Prosperity Must Be Met with Accountability and Equity – A Mirror Holder’s View

​Dear Editor,

​I read with cautious optimism the Prime Minister’s announcement of back pay for public servants by December and a further salary and minimum wage increase in 2026. The talk of these salary increases and a better financial projection for the government workers is commendable, but I for one hope that this happens as promised and is not an election gimmick.

​Past failures in administrative execution fuel this concern. Some persons who were entitled to a promised double salary last year had hell getting paid, running from one department to another trying to understand why some persons received payment and they didn’t. The communication between ministries and the Treasury was very poor and, at some times, impolite.

​I want to also ask the PM, who is also the Minister of Finance, that his talk of salary increase needs not be rhetoric or an empty promise but that it would be looked at thoroughly and equitably across the board. This necessary review must include fair remuneration for our Health Care Providers and Teachers, whose demanding and essential services must be reflected in their compensation.

​He needs to look urgently at pay parity for our military and para-military organizations. While some may say that the ABDF soldiers are paid for doing nothing, their work goes unnoticed and thus undervalued, as they do not report like Police or Prison, Customs, and Immigration—the valuable service they offer to this nation cannot hold any dollar value. The last I checked, the $400 raise that was given to Prison Officers and other non-established workers took a Prison Officer’s pay higher than those in the Army of even a higher rank. And I am in no way saying that Prison Officers aren’t deserving of a proper remuneration—they work in high-risk jobs, as do those at the Dennis Bowers Institution. But this disparity highlights a massive failure in fairness and equity in our national pay scale. We may not be in active defensive mode, but soldiers must always be at the ready, and leaving home does not guarantee their return to family and friends.

​Attention must also be made to equip the human resource of the military with the right training so that they can fill any position when called upon. This means training that extends beyond military defence and focuses on civilian integration, such as Meteorology, Civil Aviation, technical skills to work at APUA, in schools, and hospitals. They are our first line of defence and a powerful human resource reserve.

​Furthermore, Prison Officers and other non-established workers should receive their right salaries and allowances. Persons are working without contracts and haven’t been receiving risk allowances, uniform allowances, overtime, and meal allowances, to name a few. In this promise of a better tomorrow, all of these non-salary entitlements should once and for all be addressed.

​The PM promising better for our citizen is not just a quick fix by offering double salaries or back pay but by addressing the pay scale in line with inflation and modernizing how we do things to get up to speed. On another note, I hope persons will receive this promised back pay and their monthly salary in time to take advantage of the Christmas ABST reduction, and I hope this year it will be a tangible reduction too.

​A Mirror Holder

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