Some Government Employees Beginning To See Salary Increases, Mapp Administration Says

ST. THOMAS — Division of Personnel Director Milton Potter said Tuesday that the first set of government employees would begin seeing raises in this week’s paycheck, according to Government House press release. The announcement follows a recent job action by teachers in this district, who said they were vexed by government negotiations that asked unions to forego their retroactive pay as part of a deal to increase their salaries.

“I am elated to see these raises going into effect,” Mr. Potter said. “The ones who receive their raises this week will see an even larger check in two weeks.” Mr. Potter said that a group of employees represented by Our Virgin Islands Labor Union also received a $1,000 stipend last week, as the administration worked to fulfill contractual obligations and bring them up to step. However, it remains unclear whether the aforementioned union had to give up retroactive pay owed to its members before receiving their increases.

Natalie Tang How, the administration’s chief labor negotiator, recently attempted to clear up the government’s stance, but her response did not make less obscure the situation.

During a press conference held earlier this month to allay rising frustration among government employees, Mrs. Tang How challenged reports that the administration had given employees an ultimatum, contending that $19 million had already been appropriated by the Senate for the raises. But in the same breath, Mrs. Tang How said some unions had taken the government’s offer — which she admitted included language asking employees to forego the retro monies — refusing, she said, to wait any longer to receive their salary increases while negotiations continued. Mrs. Tang How added that employees who were part of unions that had agreed to the government’s terms, would start seeing their step increases this month —  but not unions still in negotiations — contradicting her statement that negotiations would not get in the way of increases.

When pressed to speak specifically to the issue of whether the proposals that the conforming unions agreed to included language that forfeited retroactive pay, Mrs. Tang How dodged.

“Different unions agreed to different things; I don’t have the information for the various unions in front of me. But I can tell you that some unions have taken the position that their workers want to see their salary increases and they’re not going to hold up or not address their salary increases by trying to hold on to discussions relative to retroactive wages,” she said. Mrs. Tang How’s comments appear to mean that the salary increases that Governor Kenneth Mapp promised are indeed tied to whether government employees were willing to forego their retroactive monies.

The Consortium asked Mrs. Tang How for clarification and to clearly state whether or not the unions that agreed to the government’s proposal had forfeited their retroactive monies, but the chief negotiator’s response remained elusive.

“I could tell you that those unions that have decided that they’d rather get their salary increases and not retro, are actually having NOPAs (Notice of Personnel Action) processed, so they can get paid and will be seeing in April, their salary increases,” she said, again ducking the question and suggesting that retro pay and salary increases were inseparable.

Yet, even with all the elusiveness, Mrs. Tang How went on to promise that government employees would indeed receive their pay regardless of negotiations.