APNU Demands 25% Public Sector Pay Rise Before Christmas, Cites Oil Wealth

By Mark DaCosta- With Christmas weeks away, Guyana’s opposition has placed the nation’s oil riches at the centre of a wage dispute. A Partnership for National Unity (APNU) is pressing the People’s Progressive Party/Civic (PPP/C) Government to give public servants a permanent raise of at least 25 percent before the festive season, backdated to January. It argues that record petroleum receipts, a punishing cost of living and a meagre base wage make the demand both fair and affordable, and it accuses the administration of sidelining workers and their unions.

On 5 November, the People’s National Congress Reform’s (PNCR) General Secretary, Sherwin Benjamin writing on the coalition’s behalf, sent the Finance Minister a letter making the case. Public servants, it said, “are not asking for charity” but a share of “a national windfall that belongs to all Guyanese.” At a press conference on November 6, the party repeated the call and insisted the money be paid before Christmas.

Full coverageGuyana Opposition Figures Press Government for Relief as Living Costs Rise12 reports

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The argument begins at the bottom of the pay scale. The basic monthly wage stands at just $102,346, and APNU contends that most households, public servants included, are “living from paycheck to paycheck.” It wants “permanent improvement in basic salaries”, with the steepest relief going to the lowest-paid.