A union leader has warned that civil servants may demand extra cash if MPs get a proposed hefty pay hike.

Armell Thomas, president of the Bermuda Public Services Union (BPSU), told The Royal Gazette that plans to increase politicians' salaries could backfire on the Government.

"They have to be careful what they do for themselves because it can affect the civil servants," he said.

"If they get a massive increase like that, it's possible that we have to look at the civil servants.

"They don't realise that they are opening up a big can of worms. If they give themselves a pay hike like that, it's Government money.

"If the MPs get a pay rise, you can be sure we will be talking on those lines of major increases."

Under the proposals, which are still to be approved by the Senate, Premier Alex Scott's annual pay packet would shoot up 80 percent to $200,000.

Full-time Ministers would collect $150,000, with their part-time counterparts paid $100,000, up from $78,856 now.

All pay awards would be backdated to April 1 this year.

Mr. Thomas said the union negotiated pay with the Government every three years and had just signed a new agreement which led to high-earning civil servants winning big salary increases of between $10,000 and $20,000 back in April.

He added that he believed the increases for politicians were not yet "cast in stone".

But he said if approved by Senators, the BPSU would definitely begin reviewing civil servants' salaries in time for the next negotiations on pay.