Public Works Department employees who staged a protest outside the Office of the Prime Minister on Tuesday have been assured they will begin receiving outstanding payments today, Wednesday, following a direct intervention by Prime Minister Gaston Browne.

The workers mounted a peaceful picket near the Passport Office, chanting “No money, no work” and demanding payment of outstanding wages and overtime. Their demonstration prompted the Prime Minister to leave his office and engage with them directly.

Addressing the workers, Browne acknowledged their right to protest and apologized for the delays in processing their payments.

“You have been wronged, and you want the wrong corrected,” the Prime Minister told the workers, adding that the issue was not a lack of funds but administrative delays in processing the necessary documentation required for payments to be released.

He explained that while the Treasury has the money available, it cannot disburse payments without the appropriate paperwork being submitted in keeping with government accountability procedures.

Initially, Browne indicated that he had been advised the delays stemmed from documentation not being submitted by the Public Works Department. However, Director of Public Works Colis King later arrived at the scene and informed the Prime Minister that the required documents had in fact been forwarded to the appropriate department within the ministry for processing.

After attempts to contact the Permanent Secretary proved unsuccessful, Minister of Works Maria Browne joined the discussions, leading to an agreement aimed at resolving the matter without further delay.

The Prime Minister committed to making funds immediately available so that workers would receive partial payments today, Wednesday, July 29, while assuring them that additional payments would be processed before the end of the week to settle the remaining outstanding amounts.

The commitment was welcomed by the protesting workers, who agreed to the arrangement and peacefully ended their demonstration.

The development brings temporary relief to the affected employees, who had expressed frustration over the prolonged delays in receiving money owed to them. Government officials have indicated that efforts are now focused on ensuring the remaining payments are processed as quickly as possible.