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Minister of Finance and the Public Service Dr Nigel Clarke yesterday expressed confidence that he will fulfil his promise to implement the compensation review for public sector workers in April, despite the reluctance of a minority to sign off on the current pay offer.Dr Clarke gave the reassurance yesterday as he signed off on a wage settlement offer he had made in April with 10 more trade unions, representing another 20 per cent or 20,000 public sector employees, who have now accepted the Government's temporary offer of a four percent wage increase, effective April 1, 2021, as well as retroactive payment from April, plus a $40,000 one-off payment.He told the press that the additional unions have now brought the total number of public sector employees who have accepted his temporary offer to approximately 80,000 workers in 31 unions, and added his assurance that the results of the recently concluded compensation review package will be implemented in April.However, he expects that the majority of the outstanding 20,000 workers, who are still resistant, will come on board by early January to make the implementation of the review's conclusions timely.Indications are, however, that these workers are unlikely to benefit from the temporary agreement, which has apparently fizzled out with the year coming to an end, and the period for calculating these benefits obviously over."We have made a commitment to begin the compensation [package] in April, and we will not let anything stop us from doing that," Dr Clare told the press briefing at his ministry's Heroes Circle office in Kingston at which he signed off on the total package.Interestingly, two major opponents of the temporary four per cent package for 2020/21 - the Nurses Association of Jamaica (NAJ), and the Jamaica Medical Doctors Association (JMDA) - were signatories. Others included the Union of Clerical Administrative and Supervisory Employees (UCASE), the Jamaica Midwives Association (JMA) and the Jamaica Association of Education Officers (JAEO), representing the administrative staff of the College of Agriculture, Science and Education (CASE)."Too many people have invested so much in that process for it to be derailed. We have got 80 per cent so far and we expected the number to increase substantially, shortly, so we are good to go. What we need to do now is to start the process of engaging with the individual unions. We need to transition very quickly and rapidly," Clarke said.He noted that the timing of the signing yesterday should tell the seriousness of purpose with which the Government is treating the negotiations, and public sector compensation, in general.He noted that, unlike with previous years when it took two years to sign on 31 bargaining units, it has taken less than one year to do the same thing this time around. He said the 10 new signatories have increased the number of workers who have now consented by 10,000. Some seven other bargaining units are still missing, including the Jamaica Police Federation"We are proud of the fact that though it [the offer] is modest, the Government could offer an increase, and actually increase the offer during the course of the year as the [economic] recovery got underway," Dr Clarke said.."I am also very proud of the fact that Jamaica has the degree of social solidarity and consensus...We have the level of social consciousness and solidarity in the country that we understand what is good for ourselves and what is good for the country," he said.However, he noted that in terms of the time constraints, his ministry might hold meetings with more than one union at a time, instead of all 38 bargaining units individually."But, we will discuss how we do it and then we will have dialogue with you," he assured the union leaders present.The union representatives included: president of the JMDA Dr Mindi Fitz-Henley; president of the Nurses Association of Jamaica, Patsy Edwards-Henry; John Levy of the Union of Clerical, Administrative and Supervisory Employees; Bobbie Joe Campbell, president of the Jamaica Midwives Association; and, Lilieth Clarke Sinclair, representing the CASE administrative staff.The NAJ president said that while her members were not 100 per cent in agreement with what had been offered, they were looking forward for better."We are looking for better days. We are looking and hoping that as we sign today, it will signal the beginning of a new year of negotiations. So, we will look forward to what the compensation review will bring," she said"We are looking forward to working with the ministry so that, at the end of the day, the future for us will be what I call bright; the future for those of us who give our all to ensure that this country stays afloat, and for nurses in particular, that their future will also be bright," she added.Levy, who is general secretary of the "white-collar" UCASE, commended Dr Clarke for "keeping the ship afloat", and extended his appreciation to the staff of his ministry.However he said that, going forward, there was a need to find more efficient ways of dealing with salary negotiations involving multiple unions and bargaining units, so that the negotiations can be completed more satisfactorily."I am facing the challenge right around the public and private sector, where the issue of getting an efficient way to conduct some of these negotiations is concerned. Whether we look at a set formula with certain caveats or certain provisions, but we are going to have to deal with that," he stated.He added that while it is a challenging time, "we are hopeful that some of the commitments that we would have picked up along the way, that they will bear some fruit in the future".The meeting was chaired by Deputy Financial Secretary Wayne Jones, who heads the ministry's Strategic Human Resource Management Division.