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Some 660 public servants now eligible for retirement- SFC Report

- Gov't warned of severe impacts should mass exodus occur
A total of 660 public officers in the Virgin Islands (VI) are now eligible for retirement, if they so wish, according to information coming out of the 2022 reports of the deliberations of the Standing Finance Committee (SFC). Photo: VINO/File
Director of Human Resources, Department of Human Resources, Mrs. Michelle Donovan-Stevens stated that there are some 360 officers who has attained 25 years of service and more. Photo: GIS
Director of Human Resources, Department of Human Resources, Mrs. Michelle Donovan-Stevens stated that there are some 360 officers who has attained 25 years of service and more. Photo: GIS
ROAD TOWN, Tortola, VI – A total of 660 public officers in the Virgin Islands (VI) are now eligible for retirement, if they so wish, according to information coming out of the 2022 reports of the deliberations of the Standing Finance Committee (SFC).

During the SFC meetings with the Human Resources Department, it was noted that there is a very high number of officers retiring.

360 officers reach 25 years of service 

“There are 360 officers with 25 years or more service, if they opted to have a mass exodus, the government will be severely impacted, and these are officers who have significant experience,” Director in the Department of Human Resources, Mrs Michelle Donovan-Stevens stated.

It was noted that while the numbers may seem high, every year they are increasing between retirement and a portion of officers who are opting to resign, “We are gaining as well as losing talent so do not let the numbers distract us from where we really are.”

According to the Director, the breakdown of the number is that there are some 360 officers with 25 years or more of service.

She also indicated that there are 300 with 20-24 years of service who are on the brink of crossing over, “So there will be 660 officers eligible to retire if they so wish to,” Donovan-Stevens added.

Public service grew by 32 staff from 2017 to date 

In total, it was revealed that there are 2693 total employees in the public service as of October 31, 2021, and that the employee population since 2017 to date has grown to 32 additional staff from 2661 to 2693.

“Even from 2020, the staff count has grown up to 224 additional staff; but members are stating that most departments are short-staffed,” Minister for Natural Resources, Labour and Immigration, Hon Vincent O. Wheatley (R9) noted.

It was indicated that the increased numbers came from the recent hire of a number of educators and some police; including that some officers may be on short-term assignments so the numbers are not steady and would fluctuate during the year.

17 Responses to “Some 660 public servants now eligible for retirement- SFC Report”

  • Island Peep (28/01/2022, 12:19) Like (20) Dislike (29) Reply
    25 years working is nothing. 40 years is now standard before retirement, so we need to keep the civil servants at work, rather than have them sit at home with a pension (which successive Governments have not provided for) or leave to get another job plus their pension.
  • Questioning (28/01/2022, 12:20) Like (28) Dislike (4) Reply
    Would anyone know that they had left work if they did retire??? Productivity in the BVI public service is just terrible - ask their customers!
  • Stop It (28/01/2022, 12:26) Like (27) Dislike (0) Reply
    Labour department is saying they cant function because they are short of staff, hospital say they can't function because they short of staff, yet here comes this guy saying they have more than enough people. If all these hundreds of people reach age for retirement let them retire. They just sitting in these positions doing nothing but feathering their own caps.
    Look the labour commissioner - replace her for one. Hospital only taking who they family. you saying your young people can't get jobs move up the people already in the system and bring the young ones in and train them. Ayo just talking nonsense. Get a separate body to do employment. not the people who in charge of these places. Nepotism abounds in these places and this should not be.
  • Like everything else (28/01/2022, 13:33) Like (16) Dislike (7) Reply
    It seems to me that every aspect of government has no forward planning or guidance to foresee clear problems down the line and prepare for them.
    People are now living longer therefore in a small place like this we must push the retirement age up and present day civil service must contribute to their pension, gone are the days when government coffers will do everything.
    Learn from the country Greece the once darling of EUROPE, many problems cause its economy to collapse, one main problem was the civil service and retirement packages similar comparison to BVI. Our present day leaders must change course and stop nonsense from happening, just for the sake of a vote.
  • No pension plan (28/01/2022, 13:42) Like (31) Dislike (0) Reply
    The government does not have a pension plan in place where funds are deducted from employees pay and held until retirement.
    Continuously paying retired employees going soon broke the government because they are getting funds from a plan they never contributed to.
  • Civil Service Retirement age (28/01/2022, 14:05) Like (25) Dislike (3) Reply
    - Cayman 65 years of age
    - Bermuda 65 years of age
    - Turks & Caicos 60 years of age
    - BVI 25 years services..we are the best !
    • Aged (28/01/2022, 15:46) Like (4) Dislike (2) Reply
      Thats comparing apples to oranges. BVI 65years of age
    • @ Civil service retirement age (28/01/2022, 16:00) Like (2) Dislike (0) Reply
      U forgetting one. St Kitts age 55. . This is a young person but that's the policy in St. Kitts. . Sad.
    • @ Civil service retirement age (28/01/2022, 16:36) Like (7) Dislike (0) Reply
      You are so correct. There are 40 plus people walking around retired because they did 25 years
      Start working for government right out of high school.
  • ESTIMATED PENSION LIABILITY (28/01/2022, 14:50) Like (13) Dislike (0) Reply
    For the BVI Government is $400 million USD. Not accounted for in any of the savings or budgets..
  • Can't do it now (28/01/2022, 15:57) Like (4) Dislike (3) Reply
    I don't think our economy. Our treasury, our finances are in a position to pay half of those 600 retirement payments...So the smart and economical thing to do Is to send them home 25 by 25, seek out those that are irrelevant and unproductive first.....
    • They need to go (28/01/2022, 21:10) Like (5) Dislike (0) Reply
      Send them home. Why they wang to work till them dead. Go with grace. Let the government find your money and pay you
  • E. Leonard (29/01/2022, 10:39) Like (6) Dislike (0) Reply
    For years, the talk has been that every manjack know that the public sector was/is bloated but no politician would touch the subject with a 100 metre poll, for it is was not good for their political health and well-being. Now, the growing chatter is that overall the public sector is understaffed. Can these two situations be true or they are urban legends? How current is the latest study on public sector size, organization, potential mergers, potential services centralization, level of productivity(low productivity comes at high cost), retirement criteria, retirement system funding, etc. Does the 2693 public sector employees include statutory bodies employees?

    Moreover, IMO, it will take extraordinary circumstances for minimally-eligible public sector employees to make a run for ‘retirement border’ in mass. Government, by necessity, is a major employer(~25-30% of workforce). Typically, the force is dynamic; employee will come and go with most staying on to qualify for retirement. As such, effective succession planning is critical to maintaining the functionality of the public sector; the public sector should not skip a beat with a small, typical movement of employees. It should be anticipated and managed.

    Further, the elephant in the room is the absence of a solid employee retirement system. Employee retirement compensation is an unfunded liability. During the NDP administration(s), the unfunded liability was approaching $300M. Retirees are compensated from the annual Operations and Maintenance budget. That should be a concerning situation. For example, during an economic downturn and revenue shortfall, what guarantee and priority will retiree compensation be in the budget. Looking forward, a retiree compensation sinking fund should be established. At roll out, government should ignite the fund with some seed money/working capital. Subsequently, both employees and government will contribute to the fund which will be administered by a board.
    • Ne Timeas (30/01/2022, 19:57) Like (2) Dislike (0) Reply
      BVI politicians must quit timidly hiding behind their shadows and step forward to review the public service and the retirement system. Procrastination is not a strategy to solve the problem; it requires bold and strong action. Any politician that cower like a wet noodle in addressing a difficult problem should not be in the HOA. The people must demand action and now.
  • Paranoia1 (30/01/2022, 00:51) Like (1) Dislike (0) Reply
    So here are Fundamentals of the System in place as it concerns Voting Bodies before the Standing Finance Committee
    Which.... does not include the Statutory Bodies... And how does Patriotism Fit into the Equation.. Leaving High School at 18 Years and Working for Government for Only 25 Years.. You are now only 43 Years ...Old and just in the Prime of Life... There is an Miscalculation On the part of Those who..Creates Labour Force Protocols....And then balking about Too Many Expats..and the
    Greenery Vs the Caribbean Dollar...BTW...
  • Political Observer (PO) (30/01/2022, 11:32) Like (2) Dislike (0) Reply
    Estimated Pension Liability and E. Leonard touched on what should be a concerning issue, especially among current retirees and future retirees, but is getting little attention——Unfunded Liability, ie, future debt with no secure funding. As Leonard posed, during an economic downturn and revenue shortfall or with a dwindling reserve fund, what is the priority for retiree compensation? As such, Leonard suggestion of a Sinking Fund is solid. However, it probably will be of little benefit to current retirees, as well as to current employees. Current retirees and most current employees will have to be grandfathered. Thus, there may be a two-tiered retirement system. Some are viewing the 25-year retirement as generous. Well, may be not. I suspect that 25-year retirement may not compensate that much. An employee will have to work much longer to get a more comfortable retirement check. The bottom line is the civil service and the retirement system need to be restructured. Statutory Bodies need to be engineered into the system.


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