The Saskatchewan government is looking to cut public-sector wages by 3.5 per cent.
The move is being made in the face of a rising deficit, as the government looks to save more money. According to a news release issued on Tuesday morning, Premier Brad Wall has asked MLAs and Ministers in government to take the cut first.
“Our government is asking the Board of Internal Economy to approve a 3.5 per cent salary reduction for the Premier, all Ministers and MLAs,” Wall said, in the release.
“I have always said we will not ask other public sector workers to do anything we aren’t prepared to do ourselves as elected officials.”
Wall also indicated staff in the office of the Premier and ministers will be required to take nine unpaid days off a year, reducing their pay by 3.5 per cent. The combined cuts are expected to save around $500,000 per year.
As for the 3.5 per cent across the rest of government, Wall expected the move to be done by negotiating with unions, as well as policy for out of scope employees.
“There are many different ways to achieve these kinds of savings across government,” Wall said, in the release.
“We are not prescribing any specific measures. Instead, our government is setting a savings target as the funder of public sector compensation and we are hopeful that the various employers and their respective bargaining units will work together and achieve these savings through negotiation.”
The last projected figures for Saskatchewan’s deficit put the amount at $1.2 billion.