By Fay Simmons

Tribune Business Reporter

jsimmons@tribunemedia.net

The Prime Minister yesterday cancelled today’s follow-up meeting over the public sector salary review after a union leader threatened “a national strike” unless their pay demands were met.

Philip Davis KC, in a statement, pledged to “speak directly to the Bahamian people” while hinting that the unions are not negotiating in good faith after Belinda Wilson, the Bahamas Union of Teachers (BUT) president, threatened renewed industrial action tomorrow unless salary increments for junior, line staff teachers and civil servants were made retroactive to September 2024.

Those increments, at present, are due to be seen and felt in junior civil servants’ pay cheques come December 2025 but only made retroactive to September 2025. Ms Wilson, though, asserted that making them retroactive to September 2024 would ensure junior public officials were treated equally with their middle management counterparts.

Speaking after she and Kimsley Ferguson, the Bahamas Public Services Union (BPSU) president, met with the Prime Minister yesterday, Mrs Wilson confirmed union representatives received a copy of the public sector salary review, which only covered middle managers and above, but said the same calculation method will be applied to determine raises for all public servants.

“First on our agenda was the salary review report, which we received. Please note that the salary review only included middle managers and up. However, the same method used to calculate the salaries for the middle managers and up will be used to calculate all public servants’ increases, including teachers,” said Mrs Wilson.

She said public workers are requesting to be paid retroactive to September 2024, and to receive these funds during the October pay period which is now just two weeks’ away. “We requested that all public servants, inclusive of teachers, be paid retroactive to September 2024 just like the middle managers and up, and that the payments be made October 2025 payday,” said Mrs Wilson.

Union officials were expected to continue discussions with the Prime Minister today, but Mrs Wilson then threatened that if union demands were not met, members would again protest outside Parliament this Wednesday, as well as at the Office of the Prime Minister in Grand Bahama, with Family Island members remaining at home and not reporting to work.

“If the Tuesday, October 14, 2025, meeting does not yield the results that you, the members, told us that you desire, then we will assemble Wednesday, October 15, 2025, at City Market on Market Street at 9am; at the Office of the Prime Minister in Freeport, Grand Bahama, and all Family Islands - from Abaco to Inagua - will be asked to remain at home if we have to give the green light for the industrial action on Wednesday, October 15 2025, so stay tuned,” said Mrs Wilson.

In response, Mr Davis cancelled the meeting scheduled with union officials. “Following that meeting [yesterday], the president of the Bahamas Union of Teachers made a public statement threatening a national strike and requesting a further meeting tomorrow at 1pm,” the Prime Minister said.

“After careful consideration, I have decided not to proceed with that meeting. Instead, I will speak directly to the Bahamian people and to the workers of this nation, the men and women whose effort, care and service form the backbone of our country.”

During his 2025/-2026 Budget communication, Mr Davis announced middle management public servants would receive salary increases at the end of June and there would be broader pay rises of between 2 to 8 percent for the rest of the public service coming in September, along with expanded health insurance coverage for all government employees.

However, it was announced last month that public servants who missed earlier pay rises would now receive them in December, not in September as previously planned. The Government advised increases will be retroactive to September, with each employee receiving at least two salary increments, though the size of the increases will vary by civil service worker category.

Members of the BUT and BPSU last week marched to Parliament demanding clarity on delayed salary increases that were initially promised in September, expressing frustration over what they described as a lack of follow-through by the Government.

Mr Davis, meanwhile, has confirmed that the salary review for public workers has been completed and will be released to the public. Speaking yesterday’s meeting, Mr Davis said the review was initiated to “make life better” for government employees and assured that, once finalised, it would be made public.

“This review was not done at the request of any union; it was done because my government believes Bahamian workers deserve better. We wanted to look carefully and independently at how salaries across the public service can be made fairer and more reflective of the value of the work you do,” said Mr Davis.

“I can now confirm that we will make that review public. Bahamians deserve to see for themselves the effort that has gone into ensuring fairness and equity in how we reward those who serve.” Mr Davis also reaffirmed his commitment to making payments to public workers “before Christmas”.

“If the question is one of payment, let me say again: Every public servant will be paid before Christmas. The Ministry of Finance and the Treasury have been working to ensure this, and I am satisfied that they are on course to deliver,” he added.