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Public sector is ‘overstaffed’- Pastor Skelton-Cline

-tells public officers they are overworked
Commentator and Pastor Mr Claude O. Skelton-Cline has accused government, both past and present, of being too afraid to admit that the public sector is too big, during Honestly Speaking on November 19, 2024. Photo: Facebook
Pastor Claude O. Skelton-Cline has said the United Kingdom has advised governments over the years to downsize and streamline the public service. Photo: Internet Source
Pastor Claude O. Skelton-Cline has said the United Kingdom has advised governments over the years to downsize and streamline the public service. Photo: Internet Source
BAUGHERS BAY, Tortola, VI- Commentator and Pastor Mr Claude O. Skelton-Cline has accused government, both past and present, of being too afraid to admit that the public sector is too big.

“The politicians are too afraid to tell you the truth.... but let me say this the government is overstaffed,” Pastor Skelton-Cline said during his weekly show Honestly Speaking on Tuesday, November 19, 2024, on ZBVI 780 AM.

UK has been saying to downsize private sector- Pastor Skelton-Cline

Pastor Skelton-Cline said he does not want anyone to lose their job but is in favour of that job being transformed into one in the private sector.

“One of the things that that UK have been telling the governments of the last twenty years is that the public service is too big, downsize, streamline, the politicians can’t tell you that because they’re afraid of you and what they’re afraid of they’re afraid that you won’t vote for them next time,” he stated.

The Pastor also said eighty-five percent of the Territory’s national budget will go towards recurring expenses, the main one being human resources.

Public officers are overworked- Pastor Skelton-Cline

To public officers he said, “You are being overworked and underpaid until you are working no more, the whole bureaucracy is slowed down, your morale is low, you have no incentive to get up in the morning and just come out to work.”

Pastor Skelton-Cline continued that while public officers are not told the truth about what is going on they eventually will be “forced” and then will not have “any control over what happens”.

22 Responses to “Public sector is ‘overstaffed’- Pastor Skelton-Cline”

  • What? (23/11/2024, 10:01) Like (4) Dislike (0) Reply
    I had no idea...
  • Greg (23/11/2024, 10:36) Like (22) Dislike (1) Reply
    Well, the government will realize they no longer need you to consult anything. They will save money to go towards more officers.
  • Having cake and eating it too (23/11/2024, 10:51) Like (13) Dislike (1) Reply
    The same lack of courage that he accuses leaders of he himself posses in this very article . Watch how he tries to endear hiself to BOTH sides. On the one hand he is saying the government is bloated (it is) but then he wants to curry favor with the workers and states that public officers are overworked . He wants it both ways. The first step should be to make the government efficient.Most will tolerate an oversized government workforce if it was efficient and you could get things done . A large government does provide a means to inject money into the economy by way of employment and acts as a stablizing force in an economy such as the VI that is seasonal (yes i understand that the other pillar financial, is not seasonal). What needs to be done is better distributuion of the Government Human resources to areas where it is needed rather than cuts right off the bat.
    • lynn (23/11/2024, 13:46) Like (20) Dislike (0) Reply
      I don’t know if it’s over staffed or not properly staffed. For example, Labour has hundreds of visitors on a daily basis with one cashier????? It seems like there is a problem with proper allocating the resources indeed.
  • Overpaid (23/11/2024, 11:27) Like (22) Dislike (0) Reply
    Government is over staffed with high paid consultants that do little to no work but collect thousands of dollars monthly. Mr. Skeleton-Cline was one of them. The current premier is trying to give handouts to lots more of his affiliates; the agricultural consultant. If we want to clean up, I suggest that we start looking at unnecessary consultants.
  • ausar (23/11/2024, 11:31) Like (1) Dislike (8) Reply
    I think the Kingdom, would have been the wiser, if they had state, instead, that they would speak to the European expatriate employers: TO NOT, be RACIST, in its employment practices-hiring, execution of work, salaries, etc.- to "ancestral" Virgin Islanders, and to ALLOW Virgin Islanders, the ability to rise, fully, and to experience, all of the benefits- remunerative, and otherwise, that their companies have to offer, without rancor, and stressful policies, that many Virgin Islanders, have felt over the last forty years, that most, have been doing business in these islands, causing, the mass exodus of, and into,Governmental agencies, for work!

    THIS, can be the only statement worth listening to, and reading about, from the slave masters of ancestral Virgin Islander' descendants!!!!
  • out the trough (23/11/2024, 11:45) Like (11) Dislike (0) Reply

    His snout no longer in the trough- that is the problem- what...hypocrite

  • BuzzBvi (23/11/2024, 11:47) Like (3) Dislike (0) Reply
    They definitely have had too many consultants.
  • Rubber Duck (23/11/2024, 12:44) Like (0) Dislike (5) Reply
    The man speaking good
  • GateKeeper (23/11/2024, 12:45) Like (5) Dislike (0) Reply
    We cannot keep throwing around that the civil service is bloated. If so compared to what?? Provide the numbers .,How much of the budget is marked to pay retirees? How is being paid to active employees? What is the productivity of the active civil servants? Poor productivity cost ‘ hole tun.?? The retiree pay is a sunk cost, so that is an above line cost.
    During the NDP administration I heard Premier D. Orlando Smith who was MoF stated that the retiree pay had an unfunded liability approaching $300M,, for employees were paid from current revenues. Employees don’t contribute towards their retirement; there is no sinking fund..Gross oversight looking back. I digress. How many civil servants are what is the ratio of civil servants to population base served and how does this ratio to other locales? If it is much higher than similar population size locales , what is the plan of action? The VI economy is small and un-diversified, so government by necessity becomes a major employer. As such, the tax payers need to see maximum productivity. What needs to done to start trimming the bloat if one exist.? Here are some suggestions, a)conduct a staff need study b) conduct position desk audit, c) delete waste and duplication, d) initiate a hiring freeze, e) determine if position(s) which are vacant bey retirement, resignation, etc, need to be filled? f) conduct a productivity study, g) leverage technology to reduce cost, h) determine which positions are inherently government and needs to be filled by civil servants and if no can the function be outsourced? i) conduct a creative destruction study.

    Has a study already been done? Can it be dusted off and updated and implemented? Or it is dated and needs to conducted again? Any new plan must include employee sharing in their retirement.. This means there will be different plans for employees. For example, current retirees and some current employees will be under the old plan. New employees and some current employees will be under the new plsn(s) .
    • @GateKeeper (24/11/2024, 07:59) Like (5) Dislike (0) Reply
      The govt commissioned an efficiency study prob going on 20 years ago. The final report was never released, although the printed media reported on the executive summary, which indicated something along the lines of having a 30% surfeit of staff to accomplish its stated duties, which is why the final report was never released. I think the stats show that something like 1 in 3 adult Belongers are employed by govt. People might have to be let go if govt were to become more efficient, so the bureaucracy lamentably continues.
  • Nonsense!! (23/11/2024, 14:30) Like (3) Dislike (0) Reply
    What is man trying to say? Public Service is overstaffed but in the same breath the staff is overworked. If he said understaffed and overworked, I would say pardon; it is an oxymoron statement on his part. Cl&*de we are not all stupid.
    • Exactly (23/11/2024, 16:47) Like (1) Dislike (0) Reply
      He trying to line up himself so that if he run he could use both positions to his advantage.
  • asking for a friend (23/11/2024, 17:12) Like (1) Dislike (1) Reply
    Which government will lay off civil servants?
  • dangerous (23/11/2024, 17:14) Like (2) Dislike (0) Reply
    Who are you getting paid by now ? Your voice only comes out when it benefits you and yours.
  • FACIAL EXPRESSION (23/11/2024, 21:10) Like (2) Dislike (0) Reply
    IS SAYING )> CITY SLICKER ) YA'LL ALREADY JNOW ME, , YO BOI JUST WALK INA ROOM AND DROP AH COUPLE AH LOW BLOWS ON ONE SIDE - AND WHEN AH LEAVING AH DROP ANOTHER SET AH LOW BLOWS ON THE OTHER SIDE TO PLAT WITH YA'LL HEADS AS AH NAVIGATE MY WAY THROUGH YA'LL SOULS , HEY I GOT THIS ALL FIGURED OUT , AND AM JUST GETTING WARMED UP , PLUS I GOT A REPUTATION TO LIVE UP TO , AS THE " CITY SLICKER " AS I WAS HAILED AS IN DETROIT
  • facts (23/11/2024, 22:17) Like (2) Dislike (0) Reply
    The Dec. 30 report — which was carried out pursuant to a recommendation from the Commission of Inquiry — examined Mr. Skelton-Cline’s contracts from March 25, 2019 to Sept. 17, 2021.

    Though Mr. Skelton-Cline ultimately received $365,650,
    RETURN TAXPAYERS MONEY.....
  • Stopitnow! (23/11/2024, 23:28) Like (0) Dislike (4) Reply
    Forgive the man, man. All you to like to kill your own people. You forgive all and sundry, but want to sink your own deeper. Talk about the cheap labour people who in the next twelve years you will not be able to "stop the frig at the polls." You think I lie, ask Daniel. He can tell you 'bout that frig.
  • cline (24/11/2024, 13:11) Like (1) Dislike (0) Reply
    Overstaffed in some areas, and understaffed in others
  • @ ASURA (24/11/2024, 13:19) Like (1) Dislike (0) Reply
    AKA - ASS I AM , EVERYTHING YOU JUST HOT TO PUT IN SOMETHING RACIST FROM YOUR COLLECTION , CARNT U JUST NURTURE YOUR EVIL THOUGHTS IN YOUR DIRTY MIND AND
    KEEP FOR YOURSELF
  • Eldread (24/11/2024, 20:00) Like (0) Dislike (0) Reply
    Ok he is given ifonfo from the statistics department by sowandie as his anonymous adviser, sowandie saying employment will increase for 2025 while he preparing us for attrition in the government sector.
  • C**** C** (25/11/2024, 21:51) Like (0) Dislike (0) Reply

    Start by getting rid of them who does their personal business during government time especially the guy who drives the p****e taxi



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