Civil Servants Consider Boycott Over Raises
Premier Dr Natalio Wheatley says he is unaware of any planned civil service boycott during Public Service Week after reports that some officers are unhappy with recent legislators' pay increases and Auditor General findings. The Premier urged public officers with grievances to write to the Deputy Governor or his office, and reiterated that the Deputy Governor led a PwC-backed review that cost roughly $30 million to implement.
Premier Dr Natalio Wheatley says he has no knowledge of an organised civil service boycott during Public Service Week (October 5–10), after media reports that some public officers planned to sit out celebrations in protest of recent salary adjustments for legislators and the Auditor General’s criticism of how those raises were handled.
The Premier spoke at a recent press conference in response to a question from media owner Cindy Rosan, who told him that disgruntled public officers were planning a walkout. "I'm unaware of what you call it — a boycott," he said, and advised that any civil servant with a specific grievance should write to the Deputy Governor’s Office or to him directly.
Wheatley reminded residents that the terms and conditions of public service employment fall under the Governor’s responsibility, which has traditionally been delegated to the Deputy Governor. He reiterated that the Deputy Governor’s Office led a "transparent process" for the salary review, engaging PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) and holding several stakeholder consultations across the public service.
The Premier said his administration allocated roughly $30 million to implement the raises and acknowledged that many officers had been earning below a living wage prior to the review. He also conceded that the outcome was uneven: while some public officers benefited significantly, others — particularly those at the lower steps of their salary grades — saw little or no change. "That's something we have to correct, but we need the resources to do it," he said.
Wheatley noted a recent Cabinet decision to end automatic annual increments for public officers, moving instead toward performance-based compensation. The government intends to carry out regular salary reviews going forward with the stated aim of aligning pay more closely with employee contributions.
On the Auditor General's report, which criticised the secrecy surrounding legislators' approval of their own increases, the Premier said accountability must follow. "There's a level of accountability that has to take place as it relates to those failings, and there must be acknowledgement," he said, signalling that legislative conduct around the raises requires scrutiny.
The remarks come amid continuing public debate in the BVI about fairness and transparency in public-sector pay, including allowances and lawmakers' raises. For civil servants, the immediate questions are how grievances will be addressed, how the government will fund corrections for lower-paid workers, and whether upcoming performance-based reforms will restore confidence in the system.
Primary source: BVI News