Service is key, says Simpson Miller

JAMAICAN WORKERS will have to become more service-oriented if the country is to survive in the competitive global environment, says Minister of Tourism and Sport, Portia Simpson Miller.

Speaking recently at the Jamaica Civil Service Association (JCSA) 81st Annual General Meeting at Jacisera Park in Kingston, Mrs. Simpson Miller said Jamaican workers do not have a good attitude towards service. "We associate it with servitude," she said.

She noted that in the emerging global economic environment, quality service will be the norm and not the exception and the country's survival will depend on the level of service offered to those who do business here. "Sloppy service is the enemy of productivity," the Minister declared.

She said people have choices as to where they do business or spend their money and are under no obligation to deal with Jamaica. Mrs. Simpson Miller singled out tourism as an area where persons have numerous options, particularly in the region.

The Tourism and Sport Minister told the roughly 300 civil servants there that public sector workers had to provide the same level of service to all persons regardless of their standing in the community. Whether persons are returning home or merely doing business in the island, their contact with the civil service had to leave a positive impression on them, she said.

She chided civil servants who fail to provide quality service to the public. "We want to be first world, we must offer first world service to our people," she suggested.

Meanwhile, president of the JCSA, Eddie Bailey said, even as much is being demanded of civil servants they must be provided with the tools to do their jobs.

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