Workers in the public sector will enjoy a 20 percent increase in salaries across board. The salary increase will be backdated to January 1 2011 but will be paid in September this year. This was the outcome of a meeting held Monday between the Fair Wages and Salaries Commission and representatives of organized labour as part of the process leading to the full implementation of the single spine. The increase will translate into 4 Ghana cedis 10 pessewas a day. George Smith Graham, Chief Executive of Fair Wages and Salaries Commission told Joy Business the increase is exclusive only to public sector workers and should not be misconstrued to be a new national minimum wage. He said the increases will facilitate the implementation of the Single Spine Salary Structure. “The key issue is that once they are on the single spine that is [the] more reason why they need this new base pay,” he said. He assured that his outfit will work around the clock to include public sector workers who are yet to be put on the spine. Secretary General of the Trade Union Congress Kofi Asamoah told Joy Business though they welcome the increase, they would have wished for more. "We acknowledge that times are hard, in spite [of the fact] that we have talked about single digits, cost of goods and services keep on rising every day; our expectation would have been more than that," he said appealing to members to make do with the new increment. He urged the Wages and Salary Commission to expedite action in putting the remaining public sector workers on the single spine.