JMEA & PSOJ demand accountability from government after massive salary increases given to politicians.

 The Jamaica Manufacturers and Exporters Association and Private Sector Organisation of Jamaica, two most stalwart private sector groups have called for more accountability and transparency from Jamaica's government officials in light of the announcement of the massive pay increase the political directorate received on Tuesday (May 17, 2023). 

While the groups shared that they do not have in principle a problem with the salary increases, they believe that any increase granted should be in line with the macroeconomic realities the country now faces and must be accompanied by measures that foster accountability and transparency in governance that will allow citizens to readily assess performance of each elected representative or Cabinet minister or Senator. 

The PSOJ and JMEA recommended that implementing Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) and job descriptions (the job description of each Minister/parliamentarian to date has not been given) is very critical to the smooth running of the country. 

PSOJ and JMEA statement:

"Although this matter has long been discussed and promised, it must now be treated as a matter of urgency to ensure that our officials are performing effectively and commensurate with the investment from the Jamaican public. We see no reason why the Ministry of Finance and Public Service cannot be tasked with evaluating the performance of the Ministers and reporting same to the Cabinet or directly to the Honourable Prime Minister. The public expects a significant improvement in their performance given these very large increases. 

Given the significant increases that have been approved, the PSOJ and JMEA join in calling for further consideration of the recommendations from the Carl Stone Report commissioned by the Michael Manley administration in 1990. The recommendations include allowing citizens to recall poor-performing Members of Parliament and implementing special training courses for politicians."

 Tempers flared in the general public as news broke about the exorbitant rise in salaries the politicians will be receiving. The brow-raising increases of as much as 200 percent in salaries paid to members of the political directorate has had tongues wagging since Tuesday and many political commentators saying their piece via social media.

One popular commentator on Twitter wrote:

"The message is clear, given conduct & words taken together: we do not need to attract & retain high quality teachers, nurses, security specialists (JDF JCF, rank & file)…But we must ensure the top politicians & public sector administrators are attracted & retained."

Even now the unions of the Jamaica Teachers' Association and the Jamaica Constabulary Force are demanding a review of the Compensation Package meted out to them as they are asserting that their members especially long standing members are worse off than before and will be taking home less after tax. 

The increases will see the salary of members of parliament move from $4.3 million per annum to over $11 million. The Prime Minister’s salary will move from just over $9 million to almost $26 million this year and about a little over $28 million in 2024.