As another Public Service Week is celebrated, some civil servants are asking a simple question:
What exactly are we celebrating?
Public Service Week is intended to recognise the men and women who keep government functioning — teachers, healthcare workers, revenue officers, administrative staff, social workers, maintenance crews and countless others who serve the Territory every day.
But for a growing number of public officers, the celebrations are being overshadowed by frustration over unresolved workplace and compensation issues.
And this is not the first year.
For the second consecutive year, some civil servants are reportedly boycotting Public Service Week, citing concerns that issues raised and commitments made during last year’s observance have still not been adequately addressed.
That should concern Government.
The morale problem
Guavaberry Media continues to hear concerns from public officers about low morale, management, workplace culture, outstanding compensation issues and what some describe as favouritism, intimidation or victimisation.
These are allegations, not established facts, and they deserve proper investigation.
But the broader issue is difficult to dismiss: people who feel undervalued do not suddenly feel valued because Public Service Week arrives.
Government has acknowledged for years that outstanding increments and compensation issues affected public-service morale.
The 2024 salary review and subsequent adjustments were intended to address longstanding disparities and improve recruitment, retention and motivation.
But questions remain about whether the reforms have adequately addressed the concerns of long-serving public officers — particularly those who believe their experience and years of service have not translated into meaningful salary progression.
That is not simply a payroll issue.
It is a morale issue.
You cannot celebrate people you refuse to hear
The reports of workplace intimidation, victimisation and poor management are perhaps even more concerning.
If employees believe they cannot raise legitimate concerns without consequences, then Government has a management problem that cannot be solved with an awards ceremony or luncheon.
There must be credible mechanisms for public officers to report workplace problems safely, and there must be accountability when poor management is substantiated.
At the same time, allegations must be investigated fairly rather than automatically accepted as fact.
Accountability has to work in both directions.
The boycott should be a warning
Government should not simply dismiss a Public Service Week boycott as disgruntled employees refusing to participate.
If this is the second consecutive year in which some civil servants feel compelled to boycott, Government should be asking why.
What commitments were made last year?
Which have been fulfilled?
Which remain outstanding?
How much remains owed in salary or increment arrears?
Are experienced officers being adequately recognised?
Are workplace complaints being properly investigated?
And are managers being held accountable when their conduct is found wanting?
These are not political questions.
They are management questions.
The BVI cannot afford to lose experienced public servants because they no longer believe the system values them.
Institutional knowledge is an asset. Experienced employees are an asset. Teachers, healthcare workers, administrators and every other public officer who understands how government works are assets.
When they leave, the Territory loses more than an employee. It loses experience, continuity and institutional memory.
Public Service Week should mean something
Public servants deserve to be celebrated.
But perhaps this year’s Public Service Week should also be an opportunity for Government to listen.
Listen to the officer who has been waiting for proper recognition.
Listen to the employee who believes the salary does not reflect the job being performed.
Listen to the person who says the workplace has become hostile.
And listen to the people who have decided, for the second year running, that they cannot celebrate until the issues they were promised would be addressed actually are.
You cannot solve a morale problem with a party.
You cannot solve a management problem with a luncheon.
And you cannot celebrate public service once a year while ignoring the people who provide that service every other day.
Public Service Week should not simply be about celebrating the service.
It should be about making sure the people providing that service have something to celebrate.