Government and trade unions have reached a deal that will see public sector workers getting a one-off payment of $1 500, a six per cent salary increase over the next two years and a 16 per cent hike in allowances up to 2025.Under the agreement, there will also be a regrading and job evaluation exercise across the public service this year and a committee set up to address employee grievances.The deal was reached on Tuesday at the end of four rounds of talks chaired by Director General in the Ministry of the Public Service Penelope Linton.The National Union of Public Workers (NUPW), which represents the largest number of public sector employees, welcomed the settlement as reasonable, while the Congress of Trade Unions and Staff Associations of Barbados (CTUSAB) described the negotiations as successful based on the principle of “give and take”.“The agreement entails a $1 500 lump sum payment that is tax-free that will only include National Insurance deductions to maintain the pension entitlement, and that would be for the year 2022. [The pay increase] will be three per cent 2023-2024, and for the year 2024-2025, three per cent,” General Secretary of the NUPW Richard Greene told Barbados TODAY soon after the settlement.
