Mapp cabinet met on St. Croix on storm recovery, wage adjustments and hiring

Gov. Kenneth E. Mapp and Lt. Gov. Osbert Potter met with cabinet members on St. Croix on May 7, 2018, to discuss how to coordinate and speed the use of anticipated federal disaster-recovery funds following Hurricanes Irma and Maria.

According to Government House, the administration discussed hiring needs tied to recovery work, including attorneys at the Department of Justice, contract specialists at the Department of Property and Procurement, and civil engineers at the Department of Public Works. The meeting also addressed recruitment efforts by the Division of Personnel, which said it planned job fairs in both districts on May 29, 2018.

Government House said the cabinet also discussed pay inequities across departments, and Mapp directed cabinet members to submit plans for salary adjustments. During the meeting, he instructed commissioners to raise the salaries of government workers to comply with the minimum-wage increase scheduled to take effect on June 1, 2018, when the territorywide minimum wage was set to rise to $10.50 an hour.

The administration also said a proposal was being developed that could provide the Government Employees Retirement System with additional funding and would be sent to the Legislature once finalized.

Mapp told cabinet members he would leave the territory beginning May 8, 2018, and that Potter would serve as acting governor through May 11, 2018.

Official source: https://www.vi.gov/cabinet-convenes-on-st-croix-to-advance-storm-recovery-workers-to-receive-raises-in-compliance-with-minimum-wage-increase/