Members of Parliament during the meeting.
~ NAf. 13,622,853 in savings ~
PHILIPSBURG--The Temporary National Ordinance COVID-19 for cuts in the employment conditions for civil servants was approved on Wednesday evening at the end of a public meeting of Parliament to handle three cost-cutting laws.
The passing of the law formalises a 12.5 per cent reduction in employment benefits for civil servants and those employed at (semi-) public sector entities.
The law was passed by 13 votes for and one vote against. Independent Member of Parliament (MP) Christophe Emmanuel was the only MP present at the meeting who voted against the law.
Also approved last night was an amendment tabled by Party for Progress (PFP) MP Raeyhon Peterson correcting several grammatical errors in the law. In the amendment, Peterson said he considered that there were some flaws (including grammatical) in the draft, and wished to correct the flaws with the amendment.
In her introductory remarks, Prime Minister Silveria Jacobs gave a detailed timeline about meetings held with unions and the Committee of Civil Servants Unions (CCSU), and correspondences shared. She said the main goal was to ensure that no salaries were touched. However, the salary of one person in scale 17 might be. The individual is willing to accept the cut as a solidarity measure.
In providing a synopsis of the cuts, Irion said the 2021 vacation allowance had been removed, representing six per cent and a savings of NAf 6,538,969.68. A reduction in vacation days by 1.2 per cent will save NAf. 1,307,793.94. Freezing of increments by 1.7 per cent will save NAf. 1,852,708.08 as of January 2021. Reducing overtime by 2.37 per cent will save NAf. 2,582,893.02. The remaining vacation allowance from 2020 represents 1.23 per cent for savings of NAf. 1,340,488.78, for a total accumulated cut of 12.5 per cent and savings of NAf. 13,622,853.50.
Giving an insight into the vacation day reduction, Irion said persons in the lowest scales of 1 to 5 earn NAf. 1,503.50 to NAf. 4,177. The approximately 349 (21 per cent) civil servants in this scale are entitled to 19 vacation days. The average monthly salary is NAf. 3,005. The vacation days in this group were not affected.
The 812 civil servants in the salary scales 6-9, received a reduction of three vacation days. The lowest potential salary in this scale is NAf. 2,819 and the highest potential salary is NAf. 6,809. Persons in this category are entitled to 22 vacation days. The average monthly salary is NAf. 4,715 and the 819 civil servants in this group represent 49 per cent of the civil service corps.
The 209 civil servants in scales 10-13 also received three fewer vacation days. The lowest potential salary in this group is NAf. 5,092, and the highest potential is NAf.11,128. The 209 civil servants represent 13 per cent of the civil service. The average salary in this group is NAf. 6,202. They are entitled to 25 vacation days, which were reduced by three.
Scales 14-17 have 295 workers representing 17 per cent of the civil service. The lowest potential salary is NAf. 9,366 and the highest potential is NAf. 18,517. The workers in this group are entitled to 28 vacation days and earn an average monthly salary of NAf. 9,858. Their vacation days were also reduced by three.
Irion said the government had done its utmost to ensure that, in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic, persons’ way of living could remain the same for the most part.
