WILLEMSTAD - Minister of Justice Shalten Hato has called on the civil servants' unions to return to the negotiation table. Since the departure of the PNP from the coalition, Hato has also taken on responsibilities for the Ministry of Administration, Planning, and Public Service and met last week with the five unions representing civil servants. During this meeting, the unions walked out of the negotiations. Hato aims to continue discussions regarding the repeal of the law enacted in 2020, which reduced civil servants' benefits by 12.5%. Both the unions and the government want to fully repeal the law but disagree on the effective date. 

The government wants to implement the repeal retroactively from January 1, 2024, while the unions are seeking retroactive effect from January 1, 2023. This discrepancy has led to significant disagreement between the unions and the government. The discussions are being held under the Central Organized Consultation in Civil Service Matters (CGOA). The unions have threatened to take action if their demands are not met.