CAP TALKS AHEAD - Government eyes new fiscal rule to rein in public-sector wage costs

The Government has signalled its intention to re-establish a cap on the public sector wage bill, extending an open invitation to trade unions to help negotiate a new fiscal rule before the next round of wage talks. The proposal, made by Minister of Finance and the Public Service Fayval Williams on Thursday, comes three years after the previous statutory anchor – which capped public-sector wages at nine per cent of GDP – was repealed to accommodate the public sector compensation restructuring.