While the cost of living is high, increasing wages to give Barbadians more spending power “is not really a good idea”, says Central Bank Governor Cleviston Haynes.
He believes Government’s recently-announced effort to reduce electricity prices and the cost of food was the better move.
Haynes was speaking after National Union of Public Workers General Secretary Richard Green told the Daily Nation that while the price relief was welcomed, “we still must sit down and look at where the rise in prices would have gone from since the last salary adjustment”.
The Governor did not reference Green’s comments, but cautioned against “trying to chase prices through wage increases” yesterday at the Frank Collymore Hall while responding to a question during his second quarter media conference.
“The Government will have to make some very difficult choices in order to be able to facilitate an increase in wages. Trying to chase prices through wage increases, I think most economists would tell you that that is not really a good idea,” the economist said. (SC)
