The Dominican government has confirmed the appointment of 191 civil servants as permanent government employees. This development was revealed by the Minister of Governance and Public Service Reform, Gretta Roberts at a public function recently. She noted that the appointments were approved by the Public Service Commission (PSC) for the 2020-2021 financial year.
Honourable Roberts explained that the appointment represented a 142% increase over that of 2019, and that this is due to the government’s appreciation for civil servants’ contributions to nation building. She added that the salaries of public employees will always be prompt and timely since the government understands that their dedication to duty is paramount for economic progress.
Roberts disclosed that the government and labour unions agreed to “a one-off payment equivalent to a one month salary as at June 2019 for the year 2018-2019. This payment is to be made in two tranches of 50% each by December 2021 and June 2022. A 1.25% salary increase for the year 2019-2020. A 0% salary increase for the year 2020-2021 salary freeze.”
The minister further stated that the government has established a Public Service Emergency Fund to offer financial assistance to public servants in any emergency needs. The fund is targeted at fire outbreaks, hurricanes, flooding, and medical emergency situations and will be managed by the PSC. The fund will be accessible by all categories of public servants throughout the country.
According to the minister, the government also plans to construct resilient homes that eligible public servants can purchase at affordable and subsidized rates. She said the project is still futuristic and will be cited at the Warner area. The housing units will include modern amenities and resilient structures to make it enjoyable to residents.
She noted that other bills will be tabled before legislators before the year runs out and these include the Public Service Management Bill, the Public Service Management Regulations, the Public Service Management Unscheduled Employees’ Regulations, and the Public Service Commission Regulations.
In the same vein, teachers can also look forward to career improvements since the government will be creating new teaching positions from September 2021.
The government has also committed to have a new structure for the teaching service in place by September 2021 with new positions to be created for increased upward mobility in the teaching service as announced by the Hon. Prime Minister in his 2019-2020 Budget Address. Government’s team is finalizing the structure for approval and we are on schedule for implementation in the new school year.
Gretta Roberts, Minister of Governance and Public Service Reform
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