The main opposition New Democratic Party (NDP) says that if elected to office, it would grant public sector workers who serve for a particular period of time certain incentives, such as reduced duty on new vehicles.
Central Kingstown MP, St. Clair, a vice president of the NDP, who was acting as party leader while Opposition Leader Godwin Friday was overseas, made the announcement at a campaign event in Byera.
The announcement came even as he defended public sector workers amidst an attack by Storm Gonsalves, son of Prime Minister Ralph Gonsalves.
In an Aug. 19 Facebook post, the PM’s son said some public servants were “demigods” and were blocking government initiatives, to the detriment of the poor, because of their hatred for his father.
“Gentlemen and women in those positions, abusing your position, count yo days!” said the younger Gonsalves, who has no official government position and is not known to be a government employee.
Leacock, however, said the NDP’s message is to first thank the public servants and to hail the Public Service Union “for having the strength of character and conviction and say to Ralph and company, hands off our civil servants.
“And in the New Democratic Party, we are saying we all stand by the labour movement that gets up and protects the rights of our public servants.”
Leacock outlined issues affecting public sector workers and their unions and noted that these things were taking place under a Labour government, which the labour movement has taken to court repeatedly to protect the interests of public sector workers.
“We are saying to all the public servants, your job, your work, is guaranteed when a New Democratic Party comes to government,” Leacock said, adding that it is time that public sector workers be shown love and appreciation.
He noted that public servants work under government ministries, while the civil service groups all other government workers, including those employees by state-owned businesses, such as the water and electricity company.
“… we have to begin to provide some of the same incentives in the civil service that you can find in other public service institutions,” Leacock said.
“If you’re working VINLEC, your shoes free, your clothes free. What the hell is wrong with civil servants? Why they can’t get housing allowance, too?” he said.
“If you’re in some other institutions and they (workers) do 10 years, you can get a car with discount, and car with this and car with that. We say, do 10 years, take off half of the duty at least, and make the civil service to get their own transportation like anybody else,” Leacock said.
“We say, take a different approach to our civil service; give them security of tenure. Why do you walk at a hospital for 20 and 30 years and there’s nothing for you at the end of the rainy day, when they have given your soul case — as my mother would have said? Make sure that there are proper provisions to them.”
Leacock said that the NDP will outline a list of incentives, adding that one of the reasons why the party supports citizenship by investment so that “every year you work 12 months you’ll get 13 months pay”.
He said public sector workers would receive a bonus every Christmas.
“.. you don’t have to know where black cake coming from or the ham coming from, or your curtain coming or your paint or your tiles, because you will have in place a government and a Chieftan (Neptune) that is looking out for you,” he said, referring to the NDP’s candidate for North Central Windward.
“In short, we are not just asking to go into government. We are saying that there must be a new dawn. There must be a transformation of St. Vincent and the Grenadines. It must be a St. Vincent for all Vincentians and where horse reach, donkey must reach. That’s what we are saying,” Leacock said.
This political discourse reveals a consensus that SVG’s wealth is not meant to be widely shared, a point reinforced by the ruling party’s strategy of pitting the poor against each other. The attack from the Prime Minister’s son on public servants as “demigods” illustrates how the elite deflects blame for systemic failure onto the struggling working class, framing the quest for basic benefits as a threat. Ultimately, the debate is not about creating broad-based wealth but about negotiating which segment of the impoverished population might receive a slightly larger crumb from a persistently small and controlled economic pie.
Private sector benefits for public sector workers?, Are they for real!? The NDP has to remember that government is not in the business of making money but running a country. If those benefits are given to public sector, taxes must go UP! Certain classes of public sector workers get so much benefits, such as 75% duty free concession on vehicles, guaranteed pay increases, versus private sector pays full taxes on vehicles and no guaranteed increase, but performance related increases. I how those would also apply. Parliamentary reps, I believe subject to correction, pay no income tax, I hope that also will be removed so we all can then play on the same level. It is about time performance pay increases is applied to the public sector, getting some of those lazy public sector workers to do real work.