Public Service Union: Transfer Freeze Welcome, But Not Enough

The Public Service Union is backing a new government directive that freezes transfers and extends tours of duty for public officers, but not without reservations. The union says the move is long overdue, arguing that transfers have too often been used as punishment, draining public funds and disrupting the lives of officers and their families. While the circular offers short term relief, the PSU insists it doesn’t fix the deeper problems within the system. We spoke to PSU President Dean Flowers about why the union supports the directive, and why he says real reform is still needed.

 

Dean Flowers, President, Public Service Union

“The public service union is in full support of the government’s decision not to effect transfers this year and I believe there might be couple exigencies that may need to be visited. However, those will have to be justified. Since 2021, coming out of COVID, we would have complained vehemently to the government that the transfers as were being executed, especially coming out of an election year, was primarily being done as a punitive action, rather than one that was driven by efficiency and in the best interest of public officers. We were very concerned about the separation of families during that time. We vehemently complained again in 2022 because we got numerous complaints which clearly depicted vindictiveness. We were able to demonstrate to them that the people of Belize were paying in excess of ten million dollars per year in housing allowance alone. This does not include the transfer grants, which is one thousand, two hundred per public officer. You can do the math. This is another two hundred thousand dollars. Then you have to factor in those officers who go to San Pedro, Caye Caulker, Placencia, Punta Gorda. These are hardship areas. That is another three hundred and fifty dollars. When you look at all these allowances and you quantify them on an annual basis, we are paying close to fifteen or twenty million dollars a year.”

 

The union says that it expects all eligible public officers will continue to receive all allowances where applicable for the duration of the extended tour of duty, without interruption. The union further called on the Ministry of Public Service to closely monitor the implementation.

 

Attention readers: This online newscast is a direct transcript of our evening television broadcast. When speakers use Kriol, we have carefully rendered their words using a standard spelling system.

 

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