PM Browne Says Missing Back Pay Cases Stem From Documentation Gaps, Not Lack of Funds

Prime Minister Gaston Browne says incomplete records, administrative errors and ineligible claims are among the reasons some civil servants have not yet received back pay that the government had pledged to settle by the end of 2025.

Responding to a question in Parliament, Browne rejected suggestions that unpaid back pay is the result of funding constraints, insisting that the issue lies primarily with documentation and processing.

“There has been gaps in information,” Browne said, noting that some ministries and departments submitted incomplete lists to the Treasury, resulting in eligible workers being omitted. He cited police officers among those who were reportedly left off payment lists.

The prime minister also said some individuals seeking back pay are not eligible, including persons who left the public service before 2018, recent hires and contract workers.

According to Browne, only a small number of legitimate cases remain unresolved.

“I’ve been advised up to yesterday by the Financial Secretary that there’s some small gaps in terms of a few people who have not been paid, but this notion that there’s a large amount of people who have not received their back pay, that is not so,” he said.

Browne acknowledged complaints about how some claimants have been treated at the Treasury and said customer service issues are being addressed.

“I’m told that sometimes they’re rude to these people,” he said, adding that he has asked the Financial Secretary to arrange customer service training for Treasury staff.

The prime minister said the government hopes to resolve the remaining cases within the next few months and maintained that his administration is the first since independence to bring public sector back pay fully up to date.

“It’s not a matter of not having the monies to pay the back pay,” Browne said. “We’re the first administration, certainly since independence, that would have brought back pay fully up to date.”

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