PRESS RELEASE: GPSU Responds to 35% wage increase
The Guyana Public Service Union unequivocally rejects the notion that a 35% increase in wages is unsustainable. Further, it is the Union's firm conviction that much more is necessary in order to achieve a living wage which was calculated at GYD $215,000. The current minimum wage stands at $102,346 in the Public Sector which is substantially less than what the average worker requires to have a dignified existence in Guyana. The plight of Public Workers is compounded by the fact that some are made to work without the benefit of gratuity or pension even while the country is boasting the highest GDP per capita globally. Additionally, hundreds are unfairly worked over their 40 hours per week and are not compensated at an overtime rate.
A government who is genuinely interested in poverty alleviation must earnestly work to relieve the working poor of their economic oppression as a main and urgent objective. Continued stifling of wages in light of astronomical inflation in food and housing will lead to continued exodus of the professionals needed to sustain Guyana’s development trajectory and ultimately lead to a failure of the vision of any Government. Consequently, the success of the mission of any government is intricately tied to the motivation of its Public Sector Workers whose stability and contentment are heavily dependent on earning a living wage.
The Union is proposing the joint development of a wage policy which definitively addresses mainly the condition of the working poor with the aim of actualizing their economic upliftment through the implementation of a living wage. Additionally, wage increases are paramount to one off handouts as it contributes to the worker's deserved dignified retirement.
Proposals of paltry increases in the setting of high cost of living as well as other factors such as disrespect for the Laws governing Collective Bargaining is what led to the 1999 strike and the unstable industrial relations and national climate at that time. These are historical lessons better learnt than forgotten.
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July 18, 2025