Employment Rights Tribunal Betrayal by Minister Esther Byer-Suckoo
Submitted by Anthony Davis
GOVERNMENT has been hit by a bombshell, the shock waves from which will impact the scores of retrenched workers hoping for compensation soon. In a dramatic show of disgust, eight of the nine members of the Employment Rights Tribunal (ERT), including its chairperson Traece Codrington, have resigned with ‘immediate effect – Nation Newspaper 17 December 2014
Well, well, well!
Pray tell me, Mr, union man, where were the unions when the minister responsible for the NCC workers was making his decisions about whom to fire? You were nowhere to be found because you were in bed with Government. How come you waited until the people were sent home to play that you are interested in their affairs? If there is anyone to be sued it is the Minister of Labour for failing to provide the necessary accommodation, secretariat, and equipment. We are no longer slaves where we must sit on the ground, whereas Massa sits in his fine chair.
Former PM, Owen Arthur, said:”Massa day done!”
If you had done your duty from the beginning it would not have come to this, unless you expect the members of the tribunal to bring their own equipment and find accommodation for themselves. If one starts wrong one ends wrong. You are now trying to save your own hides – nothing else. Every time a minister is wanted to face the press, he/she absconds. I wonder where she has gone?
They do their own thing and then can’t face the music!
“Ironically, had the basics been met, the tribunal could have commenced in 2013 as there would be no need to focus the collective energy on administrative functions,” they said in the letter.
My mind boggles. I thought that the tribunal was to be only set up to deal with the NCC affair. This makes it even worse! Is there no accommodation anywhere in Barbados which this “people-centred” Government could find? Is it possible that the Minister of Finance did NOT have the money for the Minister of Labour to set up the necessary accommodation, secretariat and equipment for the tribunal, whereas he has enough for high-end toys, and could pour $120 million into the always “soon ready to start again” “All Seasons”?
When it comes to the needs of the poor, the needy and the vulnerable this Government is always unwilling to help, yet it expects them to pay more and more taxes so that they can be paid. This is a very sad state of affairs. The BWA has a spanking new $ 60 million building with lots of space, because there is not the manpower to fill it. Could the tribunal not have been set up in there?
It is incomprehensible how something as important as this could take so many eons to set up!
Under the headline:”What next? FORMER NCC WORKERS ANGERED BY NEWS OF TRIBUNAL RESIGNATIONS” on page 4 of “Barbados TODAY” dated 17 December, 2014 it stated:”St. George resident Cynthia Ifill, who broke down in tears about the situation during an interview last month, accused the former tribunal members of not having their interest at heart.”
“It sounds to me like a waste of time. If they resign now that means they never had our interest at heart. Is it (justice) going to take longer or is it going to happen at all because they will have to look for a different set of people now. Is it going to happen? It’s very frustrating because I don’t know where we are going from here now. Where are we going?” Ifill asked.
It is NOT the tribunal’s fault!
The fault lies fairly and squarely at the feet of the Minister of Labour and your representatives in the hierarchy of the BWU and the NUPW. The tribunal cannot operate from under a tamarind tree somewhere, and so they – who could have started work since 2013 – needed the prerequisite conditions under which they could carry out their duties properly. They have been waiting since 2013 for somewhere to set up their office, and up to now that has not happened. If they had never resigned, we would not have known the scale of this fiasco.
I think that the Minister of Labour should resign!
“Procrastination is the thief of time.”
Barbados Underground 
NUPW meeting scheduled for 10am this morning with disrespected NCC workers who are waiting for their day with the ERT.
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Update
The NUPW has voted to march on parliament when it reconvenes.
Well done!
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Well Done?
….you mean well said.
We will see if well done – AFTER the march….
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@Bush Tea
The Council voted and the acting general secretary Roslyn Smith has come public with the commitment. How can they not march? What would make sense is if the BWU join with the NUPW. They both share the same greviance no?
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”
Bush Tea January 2, 2015 at 3:39 PM #
Well Done?
….you mean well said.
We will see if well done – AFTER the march….”
BUSHIE DAHLING yuh got muh laffing nuff You are so right about that! Happy 2015 Sweetie pie…….and stop trying to whack AC!
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@ David
Back to the Tribunal…..
Wanna bet that the new body (if a serious one ever gets appointed) will make no more progress than the old one did?
When you really think about it, the problem here is one of administrative incompetence on the part of Government.
It is like a fellow deciding that he want to build a helicopter cause he hear that they can fly sweet and land anywhere…. thus solving his immediate problem of bad traffic….
So he call in some experts and appoint them to build this choppa….
You know that the fellows will start by studying the local regulations, the safety rules, researching who could fly helicopters, where they can get fuel, who could fix them, who can service the engine…..
Cause those fellows won’t allow some idiot to put them is a position to be embarrassed – and then they become a laughing stock…
When this tribunal come up against Caswell and his books of rules and then find out that they have transgressed some shiite regulation or the other (and there are a multitude of such regulations) ….and some high court ridicule their decisions ….Then what? these big shots resign from their high paying jobs in shame?
….think these fellows foolish nuh…?
ANY ERT worth its salt will take the time to put SENSIBLE guidelines in place, consult proper legal experts and then take it KOOL time to come to any decision… unless of course it is comprised of people like AC and Dompey…. (wait bozie – wuh become uh he ???)
If the joke politicians looking for someone to tell them that the idiot at fault can be found low down in their own ranks…. or that the problem is a POLITICAL ONE that will extract a political price from them….. wuh they don’t need nuh lotta big brained tribunal to tell them that…..
Just read BU…..
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The biggest irony with the ERT is that the government, Suckoo, has already appointed their people and waiting on the unions to name their people.
O Shiite!!!
On Friday, 2 January 2015, Barbados Underground wrote:
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Happy 2015 to you too IslandG….
Stop whacking AC….?
…and do wuh?? Have whacker will whack…
…of course if you would organize that quiet dinner we were discussing since 2013…bushie could leave the whacker back at the bush hut…and we could forget all about AC as we explore that famous menu of yours…. 🙂
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Bush Tea,
Your post is spot on but I “buss” out laughing. You can be so right at times……….other times………???
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But wait, will Unity be marching?
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Suckoo, has already appointed their people and waiting on the unions to name their people.
O Shiite!!!
++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
Oh shiite is right!
A clear case of monkey playing with gun….
Obviously they did not even bother to find out why such a group of clearly intelligent people made no progress with their helicopter plans…..
…to busy shouting to listen.
…and of course Caswell tried to tricked them with his talk bout how the tribunal “could have done its work”
LOL he would LOVE to catch the ERT offside in such a meeting …..that is when you see Caswell in full swing…. with his lotta books and chat 🙂
These tribunal people are a bit too smart to fall into such a childish trap Caswell (remember Broomsie ? hahahaha)
This is truly a case where Sookoo has no idea what she is about – and either her public service advisors are equally dumb, or they are in Caswell’s union….
…or perhaps she is being advised by her fellow MPs LOL Ha Ha Ha ohhh shiirt!!
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@ Prodigal
Bush Tea….Your post is spot on but I “buss” out laughing. You can be so right at times……….other times………???
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
LOL Bushie knows what you mean Prodi…. The bushman will finish your sentence for you….
Bush Tea….Your post is spot on but I “buss” out laughing. You can be so right at times……….other times you criticize the BLP
ah lie? 🙂
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Not only the BLP but your belief that it was better to elect the DLP in 2013. You have to admit that with brass bowls like the lead in this post, it was a grave mistake! Barbados is doomed.
Talk about Barbados doomed, I am getting real nervous about Sagicor! Look I have a lot of investments there, not of my choosing, it just happened that Sagicor was “licorish” and acquired LOB much to my dismay. They had better get their act together as I do not want to end up like my friend old onions and CLICO!
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@Prodigal Son
Sagicor is operating in a country that has achieved junk status credit rating, what do you expect?
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If I was Caswell and Unity I would not march with the NUPW.
The NUPW are frauds, they are playing with vulnerable people’s emotions. A year ago when they should have stood up to this inept, incompetent, wicked, lying government, they chose to side with the said government and sell out the workers.
Caswell, dont join them, this is only a pappy show as this government will do nothing for these people. They are heartless.
Just like you hear GIS putting it out there that people are getting back their income tax refunds. The first people who got theirs back were the politicians and the BRA staff, this comes from inside the BRA so it must be true. A few other persons have met a little luck and have gotten theirs. But the majority of us are still waiting. Think these morons care about us?
Barrack can hold his breathe and wait to receive his cheque next month!
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David,
Dont make me get more nervous!
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Two things to ponder on. Firstly the Solid Waste Tax second half payment was due by December 31st so the BRA and the politicians figure they wil have some millions going into the treasury and in typical hand to mouth fashion,boasting that they paying tax returns and paying Barrack all the while knowing that the SW tax was due. Let Barrack wait!
Secondly,last year a friend suggested that he was told by his accountant that Sagicor was heading in the same direction as Clico and to review his investments with Sagi. I did.
S & P did make reference that Sagi was in a country which status would reflect upon Sagi.In other words because Barbados gone past junk bond status,Sagi based in Barbados is at risk, similarly.
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Gabriel,
I am getting really nervous since I heard the news today. My pension plan and insurance policies for the whole family are all tied up in with Sagicor ever since they took over LOB. My, my, my!
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@ Prodigal
“Not only the BLP but your belief that it was better to elect the DLP in 2013. You have to admit that with brass bowls like the lead in this post, it was a grave mistake! Barbados is doomed.”
+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++
LOL…Bushie suspected as much…
But don’t forget it was a majority of Bajans who believed it was better to elect the DLP…. and yes, we are saddled with brass….
But boss…. you want Bushie to call names…? um ain’t one-sided brass…
It was a choice of “B”- brass or “D”- brass, …and don’t fool yuhself, wunna got some champions too hear? It is just that right now the spotlight is focused on D jackass camp more than B jackass camp.
Look, bout here is SO shitty, that if an election was called now and spotlights focused on both sides, bajans would very likely vote equally AGAINST both jackass parties – resulting in another close race…
Fortunately, Caswell like he start the BUP which will at least give us another set to vote against 🙂
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@ Bushie,
After all these morons have put Barbados through, you really think that Bajans are so stupid and “Grubered” that they would be cowered into voting for these morons again?
Remember 1999?
You really think that all of the people who have been laid off without severance, all of the workers who were laid off after the DLP promised them in 2013 that not one of them would lose their jobs….. would not be motivated to vote these brass bowls out?
You really think that when these same workers look on and see what rich lifestyles these former hand to mouth morons are living that that they would not be motivated to vote these brass bowls out?
You really think that when people remember the milk and honey they were able to participate in from 1994-2008 and when they remember how hard their lives have become from 2008 until today…….that this would not motivate them to vote heavily against these morons?
You really think that people who stayed home and would not vote, do not now regret their decision and would go out and vote to vote these idiots out?
Look, Bushie, a third party will not make it. If Richie Haynes’ NDP did not make it, it will be hard for any third party, BUP in all! So we are stuck with the BLP!
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LOL
YOU may be stuck with the BLP…
…and of course you are right about the brass bowl DLP.
Up to the last election, Bajans just voted OUT the idiots with whom they got fed up …so your hypothesis is logical…
But don’t you realize that even Bajan brass bowl voters are now looking at WHO they may be voting IN….
If wunna would just get the rid of the lotta dead wood and obvious lackies …maybe you would be right.
Look at it this way…
Given a choice between sleepy “do-nothing” -Freundy and your biting, never-got-a-ministry-to-work, appointed-all-her-girlfriends-to-top-jobs, spying-on-Bajans, looking-to-close-the-blogs” Mia….
Shiite man Prodigal – Bushie would HAFFA vote against Mia – (the bushman like BU more than he dislike Freundy Boss 🙂 )
Wunna GOT to come with new blood…..can’t keep pushing the same shiite at Bajans time after time…. Next shiite wunna going do in bring Gibbs-Taitt as a candidate …steupsss
Long live … BUP
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