President Ibrahim Mohamed Solih has addressed criticisms by making crucial changes to the salary structures in health and education.
President Solih has held discussions with the relevant authorities on the complaints from medical officers and nurses regarding the changes to the salary structure and complaints from workers in the education sector regarding the benefits given to those who retire from government jobs.
Spokesperson at the President's Office Miuvaan Mohamed said that President Solih made changes to the salary structures in order to resolve the challenges faced by doctors, nurses, and teachers. He added that the changes were made after extensive discussions with workers in health and education.
As such, the president has changed the new salary structure introduced to the health sector in May by allowing medical doctors to receive an attendance allowance for working on government holidays. He also reviewed the petition submitted by nurses at Indhira Gandhi Memorial Hospital (IGMH) and made the relevant changes after discussions with the Civil Service Commission (CSC) and the Ministry of Finance.
The changes include giving nurses an attendance allowance for working on government holidays and promoting non-clinical nurses at healthcare facilities to clinical nurses. He also made the decision to reinstate demoted nurses to their previous positions if their responsibilities remained the same after the implementation of the new salary structure, on the condition they further their studies. In addition, he has extended the grace period for nurses to study from 2018 to 2026 and decided to resolve the issues faced by nine nurses in abiding by the new structure.
Furthermore, the president and the finance ministry held discussions on the petition submitted by education professionals and teachers regarding the state pay framework and decided to extend the deadline for employees to choose their preferred pension and benefits plan. The change allows them to choose their preferred plan if they resign by January 2024, instead of the previous rule of allowing them to choose if they resign 18 months after being transferred to the state pay framework.
Spokesperson Miuvaan said that the President's Office has instructed the National Pay Commission (NPC) and CSC to implement the changes. He expressed confidence that it will address the challenges faced by workers in health and education.