WILLEMSTAD – Curaçao's civil servants and educational personnel will receive only the indexation for the years 2019 and 2020 for now, as decided by the Council of Ministers this morning in an extraordinary meeting.
This decision follows intensive discussions and results in a total payout of 46 million guilders. Prime Minister Gilmar Pisas explained this morning that the government has chosen to proceed with the payment of indexation only at this time.
This partial payment is lower than the earlier request by the Minister of Governance, Planning, and Public Service (BPD), Ornelio Martina, who had proposed a total amount of 68 million guilders to be paid to civil servants. The unpaid portion was intended to cover the salary step increase for 2019, the indexation for the same year, and the one-time payment for civil servants at their maximum scale for 2020.
Earlier this week, the minister had suspended a decision on the full payment in the Council of Ministers, as there was no green light to release the total amount. Prime Minister Pisas emphasized that the country's financial position is precarious and multiple risk factors, such as the repayment of liquidity support from the Netherlands, as well as the situations at the hospital and insurer Ennia, must be considered.
Initially, it was thought that the indexation payment would amount to 36 million guilders, but this figure increased to 46 million when it became apparent that educational staff, including those in special schools, had not been included in the calculations. Further calculations are required for the ten million included in the 46 million figure.
To handle the remaining debt, which includes the salary step increase and lump sum payment, more than thirty million is needed. Minister Martina will continue discussions on this matter with the unions within the Central Organized Consultation in Civil Service Affairs. The goal is to make payments by December of this year, depending on the country's financial situation.