Finance Minister Winston Jordan said the salary increase for public servants this year will take the overall increase to an all-time high of 75%.
During a meeting with residents of Kwakwani Upper Demerara-Berbice, Minister Jordan said between 2015, and this year, the total increase stands at some 64.2%. The increase for this year will drive it up by over 11%.
“We started increasing salaries from the 1st of July 2015. And the last increase was retroactive to January 1, 2018. In two and a half years, we would have increased salaries by over 64%. By the time we are finished with salaries for this year, I can guarantee you that between July 1, 2015, and January 1, 2019, it will be over 75% increase,” the Finance Minister told residents.
According to Minister Jordan, all of this was done while giving back to Guyanese taxes that were previously taken out of their contribution to the National Insurance Scheme (NIS).
“It is this Government that removed that so that you could get whatever was taken out from your salary to take home.”
It is the Coalition Government that also increased the personal allowance. Before 2015, public servants’ personal allowance stood at $50,000. This means that if someone’s salary was $60,000, $50,000 remained the personal allowance, while the remaining $10,000 was taxed at 30%.
“If you were working for $100,000, then still $50,000 remained your personal allowance, and you had to pay tax on the $50,000. And if you were working for $500,000, only $50,000 you were being allowed, and you would have had to pay tax on $450,000. We changed all of that,” he proclaimed.
Late last week, the Finance Minister announced that public servants will receive increases to their salaries retroactive to January 1 of this year. He is expected to provide details of the salary hike this week.
(Extracted and modified from the Department of Public Information)
