MONROVIA, Montserrado – The House of Representatives has passed the National Remuneration and Standardization Act of 2019, which aims to standardize pay and benefits across all three branches of government.

The act is expected to ensure that salaries, allowances, and benefits across government are uniform and equitable, and aligned with the associated work and the positions.

The act aims to address inequality gaps in the government and ensure that public resources are managed properly and efficiently to give Liberia confidence amongst its international partners and the comity of nations.

According to the bill, measures included within will ensure that the budget for compensation is realistic, efficient, and economically sustainable.

Due to the government’s huge wage bill, the proposed law reveals that it has become compelling that the remuneration structure is harmonized and fairly standardized to reduce the huge compensation budget.

The bill noted that its provisions were necessary “especially at a time when our economy is experiencing challenges given that our national wage bill control is a key factor in enrolling into major international programs that yield huge economic dividends for the republic.”

If members of the Senate also pass this bill, public elected and appointed officials, as well as other government employees would now be placed in specific compensation categories.

The president, vice president, speaker, chief justice, Senate president pro tempore, and deputy speaker would be placed in category one while senators, representatives, and associate justices would fall in the second category.

Government ministers, judges, the chief of staff of the Armed Forces of Liberia, members of the Supreme Court’s administration, the chief clerk of the House of Representatives, and the secretary of the Senate would be classified under category three.

The fourth category would comprise of all deputy ministers, heads of public commissions and state-owned enterprises, other court administrators, the deputy chief clerk of the House of Representatives, the assistant secretary of the Senate, and the assistant chief of staff of the Armed Forces.

The next class of government employees, such as assistant ministers, deputy heads of public commissions and state-owned enterprises, senior medical, security staff, and military personnel would be placed in category five, while the rest, including directors, commissioners, and senior officers within the civil service would fall into category six. Government employees below the six different categories would fall within existing civil service grades.

The act, upon concurrence by the Senate and signing into law by the president, would require reducing or increasing the salaries, allowances, and benefits of all public officials and employees.

Featured photo by Zeze Ballah