By Ariana Gordon

THE report into the state of the Public Service was handed over to Speaker of the National Assembly Dr Barton Scotland on Wednesday.Minister of State, Joseph Harmon in handing over the report to the Speaker said it was laid before Cabinet on Tuesday and Cabinet is now in the process of considering the recommendations that have been made by the Commission established to investigate the state of the Public Service.
Minister Harmon said Cabinet will express its opinion on the report and the recommendations therein after it has been thoroughly deliberated upon.
“It is important that we allow for the Speaker to get a copy of the report even before Cabinet has completed its deliberations. We intend to hand a copy of this report to the Leader of the Opposition and to the Unions that have anything at all to do with the public service.”
The Minister of State said that copies of the report will be handed over to the President of the Guyana Public Service Union (GPSU), the Guyana Trades Union Congress (GTUC), as well as the Federation of Independent Trades Unions of Guyana (FITUG) before the end of the day.
Asked why he felt it necessary to give a copy of the report to Leader of the Opposition Bharrat Jagdeo, Minister Harmon said, “the Leader of the Opposition is a Constitutional office holder and he is in fact Leader of the Opposition in the National Assembly and we felt it important enough for him to receive an advance copy too.”
He could not state specifically what has been stated in the report, relative to salary increases, but noted that the report provides a framework within which salaries are to be negotiated.
“I don’t think the report actually says this is what you must do, because of course you know those are issues that have to do with collective bargaining and the rights of the union and the government to negotiate on behalf of the workers.”
He said notwithstanding the framework, it is important to note that it is negotiations between the government and the unions, by virtue of collective bargaining that will determine the increases public servants receive.
Describing the document as a “very detailed report” the Minister of State said the media will soon have access to it when it is published online.
Last Friday, Commissioners Professor Harold Lutchman, Sandra Jones and Samuel Goolsarran handed over the report to President David Granger, who called on Public Servants to relinquish “laziness” as they would receive increases based on their performance.
Public Service College
Meanwhile, asked to provide an update on the Public Service Staff College, Minister Harmon said work is in progress. He told reporters that interviews have been done and the staff identified for the college.
“It is now a question of having the actual location. We are working on that. As you know the president did indicate when we visited Ogle that that was going to be a campus…there is some work to be done on the buildings.”
Additionally, Harmon said that some equipment inclusive of computers have been acquired for the College. “It is just now a question of dealing with the physical facilities and that is what we are working on right now.”
The Minister said government is “anxious” to have the College up and running as it forms part of the reform of the Public Service.
“This is a very important component,” he noted.
Integration of Contract workers
Minister Harmon said more than one hundred persons who were once contract employees within the public service system have been integrated into the traditional public service. While he could not provide the exact number of persons, the Minister said salary scales have been taken into consideration.
“What I do know for sure, is that once you are going to be integrated into the traditional public service it is going to be a question of interviewing people to ensure there is no loss when coming into the traditional public service.”
The Minister of State said too that the issue of integrating contract workers into the public service has been addressed in the Commission of Inquiry (CoI) report.