WILLEMSTAD.- Yesterday, five unions representing public employees sent a warning letter to the Council of Ministers as well as to the governor, requesting the government to fulfill the payment of salary increments and the 3% retroactive payment. These unions are S.A.P, S.T.r.A.F., N.A.P.B., SITEK, and ABVO, who indicated that through this warning letter,” they are requesting the government to pay the salary increments and the 3% retroactive payment that the government owes to their members, as well as the corresponding payment from January 1, 2019, to 2020.
The unions have expressed their disappointment upon realizing that the government does not respect this payment to their members, including public employees, and that the government has not fulfilled the payment obligation. The failure to comply with public employees results in them being financially disadvantaged.
If the government does not comply with this warning letter to pay within 30 days, the unions declare that they will take legal action. Additionally, the expenses for this will be fully borne by the government.
As it is known, on December 21, Minister Ornelio Martina announced the payment of the first part of the indexation, after these unions pressured the government to fulfill what it owed to public employees. The second part will be paid no later than December 2024. Last year, the unions demanded from the government the payment of salary indexation, the “loontrede” 2019-2020, and the retroactive payment to public employees. The government agreed, and on November 3, only the indexation payment was made, while the “loontrede” and retroactive payments were for this year. The unions agreed only to the payment of indexation. Minister Martina also announced to the unions represented in CGOA that in 2024, they will meet with them every quarter to evaluate the government’s financial situation. Based on this, the “loontrede” 2019 or the 3 percent retroactive payment can be made for those who have already reached their maximum. The Council of Ministers stated that it will pay the remaining debt to public employees by December 2024. But now the unions demand that the government comply or they will take legal action.
