Gerlien Croes: Law limiting high salaries must not leave Aruba without professionals

ORANJESTAD — Minister Gerlien Croes has defended the need to review the Landsverordening Normering Topinkomens (LNT), the law limiting senior pay. In a Facebook comment, she pointed out that the opposition introduced the law and is now questioning its consequences.

Croes acknowledges that the debate can include the salaries of senior officials. According to her, however, the law also affects local professionals in management positions. She cited several court cases concerning the LNT’s implementation and said that regulations still awaiting full development are creating uncertainty for decisions about positions and staffing.

The minister is not calling for the same changes at every company. She proposes identifying where staff shortages, specific needs and pay differences with the region make recruitment difficult. According to Croes, the problem is already being felt in technical positions.

The government previously announced its intention to review the LNT, while the law is linked to reform agreements between Aruba and the Netherlands. The central question for Parliament now is which exceptions are genuinely needed and how to prevent them from opening the door to high salaries without public oversight.