Difficult Conversations – To Strike or Not to Strike

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The Barbados Labour Party administration has reportedly asked other political parties to condemn the current strike action by some of our nurses. Solutions Barbados position has not changed on this type of matter – Solutions Barbados does not condemn anyone based solely on the accusations of that person’s accusers. That is fundamentally unfair – and unjust.

The following was reported. “The Prime Minister’s condemnation was shared by the Barbados Private Sector Association (BPSA), the Barbados Workers’ Union (BWU), the National Union of Public Workers (NUPW), the Barbados Nurses Association (BNA) and the Congress of Trade Unions and Staff Associations of Barbados (CTUSAB).” (Nation 16 December 2021).

DANGEROUS BOUNDARY.

If these national groups have condemned our nurses’ strike action without hearing Senator Franklyn’s side, then they have taken Barbados across a dangerous boundary, that we should have been trying our best to avoid as a country.

Since the Barbados Labour Party administration is requesting public condemnation of Senator Franklyn, then Senator Franklyn should be offered the same space in the media to publicly defend his position. Only then can the public, including public groups, be capable of rendering a fair judgement.

FAIR JUDGEMENT.

Those groups that have prematurely judged Senator Franklyn should remember Jesus’ warning about such type of judgements: “For in the same way you judge others, you will be judged, and with the measure you use, it will be measured to you.” (Matthew 7:2).

I am a Chartered Arbitrator who has resolved many disputes over my 30-year career. Rather than pre-judge Senator Franklyn and the striking nurses, I am willing to fairly resolve this dispute – for the benefit of Barbados.

Grenville Phillips II is a Chartered Structural Engineer. He can be reached at NextParty246@gmail.com

44 thoughts on “Difficult Conversations – To Strike or Not to Strike”


  1. Why has the press not approached Sen,Franklin for his view on the matter? The press needs to be proactive on a matter of national importance.

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  2. Does it matter what Caswell have to say?

    The boss has spoken. It is what she says it is and will be what she says it will be.
    Let there be condemnation and public ridicule.

    You are not supposed to question the narrative, just “watch muh”
    Well not really me, just watch she.

    Please pay attention in class.

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  3. Are We To Strike Or Not To Strike

     

    A smarter man I ought to be,

    Registered voters follow me.

    Each step I take, each road I turn,

     

    With baited breath they hope to learn; 

    Essential paths in these dire days, 

     

    They watch with care my guiding ways.

    Ought therefore to measure my road ahead,

     

    Show decisiveness and walk in good stead.

    Those who follow may never know,

    Right from wrong but are willing to go;

    Into an abyss if I lead them there,

    Keeping needy watch through dark despair.

    Essentially, mankind is made up of a distinctive two,

     

    One type, like me, leads and the other type follows you.

    Rivers they’ll cross, mountains climb and over a cliff they’ll dive, 

     

    Never questioning, they will swarm like bees to a hive.

    Observers looking on who can’t yet decide,

    To follow my whims and step in my stride; 

     

    Think before leaping and ask on their way,

    Of new directions or changes or what I might say; 

     

    Should they ask to go on their own or take a different turn?

    This means there are more groups of people, there is one willing to learn,

    Roads on their own, where ideas may differ;

    I know a few who before them step will decipher,

    Keenly the things they disapprove of, and those they like, 

    Essentially, they wouldn’t just follow but would ask, Are We To Strike Or Not To Strike.

     

    By Khaidji

    http://www.BajanBooks.com 

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  7. Robert Morris tagged you and 61 others in a post: feeling cool.

    Robert wrote: “DO NOT FORGET WE ARE IN A STATE OF EMERGENCY. THE PRIME MINISTER HAS BEEN CEDED POWER SIMILAR TO THAT OF AN AUTOCRAT. That is the context in which the INDUSTRIAL DISPUTE between the UNION and the GOVERNMENT is to be seen. The PM has used the PUBLIC SERVICE ACT to scotch the action. She has used the Social Partnership , a most unsuitable vehicle, to present a political position to the public. This was no attempt at conciliation. Senator Franklin and his members are apparently steadfast. The battle has only just started. Already the Prime Minister has deemed the action a political rather than an industrial action. In a most alarming development a Minister and top official of the BARBADOS LABOUR PARTY is calling on POLITICAL PARTIES TO INTERVENE IN A LABOUR DISPUTE. BEWARE AND KEEP OUT. THE PRIME MINISTER HAS DIAGNOSED THE ACTION AS POLITICAL. WAIT AND SEE HOW SHE USES HER POLITICAL POWER.”

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  8. Opposition trollocs are taking this strike action as a means to attack the Government using nurses as pawns in the game with shrill arguments so they are full on Political Hypocritical Anal and Banal.

    I am adopting a new spiritual perspective that we are all God’s creations and manifestations and everyone has the right to speak and be listened to and not be dismissed and ignored.

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  9. STRIKE PRESSURE

    By Colville Mounsey
    colvillemounsey@nationnews.com
    Forty per cent of COVID-19 vaccination centres across the island have been closed since the Unity Workers’ Union (UWU)-led nursing strike began just around two weeks ago.
    This is according to joint coordinator of the National Vaccination Programme, Dr Elizabeth Ferdinand, who said the programme has been under immense pressure as a result of the human resource shortage. She said at the remaining centres, the workers were being stretched to the limit.
    Ferdinand, however, added that while the vaccination numbers were down during the period, the lull could also be attributed to preoccupation with the holiday season.
    “Luckily, we are getting some vaccinations done. Those who are working are really pushing themselves above normal limitations. We have some vaccination sites open and people are coming in. I don’t have the numbers to hand, but we have done less vaccinations in this last two weeks than previous weeks, but we have to also bear in mind that we are in the Christmas season and the fact that people are busy shopping could also account for the lower numbers.
    “The numbers are definitely down and the fact that we do not have as many sites open is certainly taking a toll. We had four sites opened today and one mobile unit,” she said.
    Her comments came as Prime Minister Mia Amor Mottley yesterday warned that the strike was putting lives in danger and greatly compromising the country’s chances of recovery from the deadly pandemic, especially with the emergence of the more infectious Omicron variant.
    She chided opposition forces for failing to condemn the industrial action as it disrupted the health system.
    The Prime Minister accused Opposition Leader Bishop Joseph Atherley and general secretary of the Democratic Labour Party (DLP), Derek Alleyne, of prioritising political considerations over the potential loss of life.
    She again slammed UWU leader, Senator Caswell Franklyn, for what she deemed as gloating over the disruption caused by the industrial unrest. Once again contending that he had jumped the gun in calling a strike over safe zones, even though the initiative has not yet been implemented, Mottley urged the trade unionist to let cooler heads prevail.
    In yesterday’s Weekend Nation, Franklyn claimed the strike was much larger than officials were stating. “They are saying that there are only 41 people on strike. That is a joke because if it was only 41 people, it could not have crippled the health services in Barbados. There are hardly any vaccine centres open, so it is very strange that we can have such an impact with only 41 people,” he said.
    PM’s query
    In her statement yesterday, Mottley asked: “What are they really saying to us in today’s media? Who is really going to hurt? Are they saying the lives of Bajans do not matter? Are they saying that the lives of working people and of poor people do not matter? Exactly to what lengths will this group go to make a political
    point? Are you really boasting that you have paralysed the National Vaccination Programme in the middle of a dangerous and deadly pandemic with new variants lurking around?”
    She added: “You are stopping the woman from Pie Corner from being vaccinated, but senators are vaccinated. What is wrong with that woman from Pie Corner or Black Rock or the man from Kirton’s in St Philip wanting to be vaccinated? Why were the senators and Members of Parliament vaccinated? Is it not to save their lives?
    “Why should that grandparent in Pie Corner or the one in Black Rock or the same person in Kirton’s or in Parish Land not want to be vaccinated? Especially now that they know that they may have grandchildren coming home for the holidays and that they are moving about more in their community because it is Christmas time.”
    However, in a statement released shortly after Mottley’s, DLP spokesman on health Andre Worrell said that by wading into the industrial dispute, the Prime Minister was throwing fuel into an already blazing fire. He said the party was throwing its support behind the nurses’ actions, stressing that they “must be respected”.
    “The nurses striked over longstanding issues which were made even more perplexing as a result of the tremendous burden which the health care sector has been under as a result of the COVID surge.
    “The safe zones and vaccine mandate may be the catalyst for the strike. However, more pressing issues are on the card. Instead of addressing these issues, the Prime Minister focused on undermining the character of the striking workers and the lone union which saw it fit to take a stand for the rights of workers in Barbados,” Worrell added.


    Source: Nation

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  10. Former high-ranking union member says public castigation of Franklyn by other unions ‘surprising’

    Article by
    Barbados Today
    Published on
    December 17, 2021

    The decision of some union leaders to publicly condemn the actions of one of their own is not sitting well with a veteran trade unionist.

    Dr. Derek Alleyne, who rose to the rank of deputy general secretary in the National Union of Public Workers (NUPW), said that whether or not these leaders agreed with the strike action instigated by head of the Unity Workers’ Union (UWU), Senator Caswell Franklyn, to publicly deem it irresponsible is not fair.

    “It is against the traditions of union behaviour. Unions can disagree on any matter but to describe the behaviour of the union as irresponsible is not within the traditions of trade unionism,” he told Barbados TODAY.

    Alleyne’s comments were in response to the public criticism of Franklyn’s actions by president of the NUPW Kimberley Agard, General Secretary of the Barbados Workers’ Union (BWU), Toni Moore, and general secretary of the Congress of Trade Unions and Staff Associations of Barbados (CTUSAB) Dennis De Peiza.

    During a press conference hosted by Prime Minister Mia Mottley on Wednesday, these leaders distanced themselves from the strike action being taken by nurses represented by the UWU and questioned whether industrial relations protocols had been observed in the matter. The UWU-represented nurses have been off the job for over a week, protesting unsatisfactory work conditions and the planned implementation of safe zones that would require them to be either fully vaccinated against COVID-19 or be tested regularly.

    Specifically, Moore expressed her disappointment at the withdrawal of labour while DePeiza suggested that the UWU’s actions were not consistent with the “principles of good industrial relations practice”.

    “As a labour organisation, we ought to show a higher sense of responsibility, maturity and professionalism, so that we do not bring the nation basically to its knees by our actions,” De Peiza said.

    Alleyne’s position was that if union leaders do not support another leader’s position, they simply don’t say anything.

    “It’s what you do that will say whether you support them or not— it is how you respond. I am aware that some of those unions have nurses as well and they don’t need to make any comment. If [their] nurses are not on strike it makes a statement. So you don’t have to come and condemn what the other union is doing. I find it is not in keeping with the traditions that we all observe as trade unionists. But then again, this might be a new breed of trade unionists who feel that they have a right to contest in the public, positions about other unions. I was truly surprised,” Alleyne said.

    The trade unionist voiced concern that anytime there is division across the labour movement, members begin to question whether or not it makes sense to be a part of the process. He believed that members are indeed aware that unions will disagree on some of the processes and procedures about anything. However, he posited that to make this disagreement public at a time when a union is fighting for its members, is not in the best interest of the entire movement.

    “I believe that a union leader responds to the calls of his or her members. He will weigh the costs and the benefits on whatever decision he is going to make because he is representing the interests of his members. . . . I don’t know what the nature of the issues are generally, but I will never deem the actions of any trade unionist as irresponsible. A trade unionist leads his union and there are issues that the members are going to put before you that you will find it difficult not to respond to.”

    On the issue of the PM’s promise that the pay of the striking nurses will be docked, Alleyne described it as an intimidation tactic and insisted that it was unfortunate that Mottley would resort to such.

    “It is ironic that all these frontline workers that all the praises were heaped on last year are now the villains,” he said. “I find it a little ironic that when there was no vaccine the same nurses were told, ‘you have to go to work, that the nature of your job is in itself hazardous’ and that ‘we will provide you with the PPE [personal protection equipment] so you don’t have to worry but you have to go to work and care for the people’

    “Nobody came out to tell anybody the nurses had no right going work – it dangerous. It was dangerous before they had a vaccine, and they had to go to work. They couldn’t say they were staying at home. . . . Now you are forcing them to take a vaccine and putting them in zones and all kinds of foolishness. I think it is unfair and ironic that those persons who went on the frontline in the first place for this country are now being forced to do things against their will,” Alleyne lamented. (KC)


    Source: Barbados Today

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  11. Everywhere is Space
    People are supportive of nurses work in the Global Covid pandemic and have been banging pots calling them heroes.

    However, strike action seems misguided, and could lead to less vaccinations and care needed, increasing the spread of virus and exceeding the limits of the health care system with a higher death count bottom line.

    Strange Worlds In My Mind (Space Poetry Volume One)

    The Sub-Dwellers (Space Poetry Volume Two)

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  12. Perhaps Verla may have been busy dealing with this situation that it has prevented her so far from making a comment on the industrial action organised by Franklyn’s union?

    “Barbados TODAY has been reliably informed of a developing plot to present Richard Sealy, a former member of parliament and minister of tourism, as the leader of the party.”

    “Well-placed sources have also confirmed that 13 of the DLP’s 24 publicly declared election candidates are supporting the move.”

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  13. Still straddling the fence on Caswell’s action, but in full agreement with Derek Alleyne.

    Very difficult to figure out the reasoning of some. Unions or kingdoms.

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  14. “Barbados TODAY has been reliably informed of a developing plot to present Richard Sealy, a former member of parliament and minister of tourism, as the leader of the party.”
    ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

    Sounds quite plausible.

    He has all the ‘right’ credentials except his predilection to ingratiation when he consistently projected himself as Lord Fumble’s lapdog and ‘Yes’ man.

    Would stench of his swimming in shit on the south coast continue to plague him?

    At least he is highly confident of regaining his seat in Parliament even as the Leader of the Opposition sans Her Majesty approval.

    Our BU Lorenzo, the purebred red political jack, must be ‘champing’ at bit to see when his yellowed political night-watchman will be shown the red card to leave the political field.

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  15. I Roam the Cosmos (extract)
    (Discipline 27 Rhythm)
    This made up battle is to the death
    Many innocent will die don’t ask me why

    Do you dare to ride the wind with me
    Do you dare to leave this Earth behind you
    Many men can give up their life for a cause
    I want you to give up your death for me
    Why should I want anyone to die for me
    Birds die
    Doves die
    Insects die
    Anything can die
    Doesn’t prove a thing to me
    I want you to do the impossible
    Give up your death for me
    Do the impossible
    Give up your death
    Do the impossible
    Give up your dead
    Are you hypnotised by the glory of the white man in his Kingdom
    You have not seen anything until you have seen my Kingdom
    Just look at the splendour of Asia and Egypt
    Splendid beyond words
    Don’t you remember

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  16. Is Verla facing internal strife? Wuhloss! That gives Ezra enough meat for his columns until the next Election.

    BTW It should all play out in the fullness of time, if Sealy wins a seat and Verla doesn’t as happened with Tom and Bree.

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    • @Sargeant

      You have struck the nail squarely on its head. Can Sealy dislodge Caddle? He has a better chance in the opinion of the blogmaster compared to Verla vs Phillips with no Kellman support.


    • To add: some will argue the point the DLP stands a better chance of making inroads leading the party into the general election. The blogmaster is of the view it is 6 of one half dozen of the next.


  17. Yes, you and I walked together hand in hand on this splendid land of Black Nation Egypt
    We were friends then
    I do not know you as you are
    You’re strangers almost to me
    All of us were wealthy then
    We didn’t worry about money we had wealth
    All of us were wealthy then
    We had money we had more than money we had wealth
    We didn’t need paper money we had gold silver diamonds sapphires rubies everything
    We didn’t need paper money we had gold sapphires
    One day someone came into our paradise
    And spoke of freedom
    Then one day someone came into our paradise and spoke of freedom
    One by one as I sit up on my throne you left me
    You left me
    And as of then you have never had a Government of your own
    And since then you have never had a Government of your own

    Reply ↓

  19. Robert Morris tagged you and 71 others in a post: feeling cool.
    Robert wrote: “POLITICAL DISTRACTIONS The Barbados Labour Party does not have a lot of time before it starts to reform the relatively large number of PUBLIC SECTOR CORPORATIONS. From the days of OWEN ARTHUR political leaders have been dragging their feet on this area of reform. Will the IMF back off the BLP? Or will it ask for its side of the bargain. When the crisis falls on the PUBLIC SECTOR WORKERS, WHICH UNION WILL DEFEND YOU. YOUR TIME IS COMING.”

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  21. When you’ve done energisation exercise above do the meditation practice below
    Hong Sau Meditation | Paramhansa Yogananda’s Technique

    Reply ↓

  22. David BU it would make political sense to appoint Mr Sealy as leader of the dems urgently.As you know i have no love for the dems but i felt that Mr Sealy did a credible job as Minister of tourism.He has a chance of regaining the seat while the same cannot be said about the many time political loser Ms Depeiza.Therefore in conclusion if the rumours are true the sooner it is done the better
    They will not win the next elections but will win some seats with Mr Sealy as leader.I gone.

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  23. @ David

    I found Robert Morris’ comments very interesting.

    Recall in January 2014, former Finance Minister Sinckler said ‘government’ was reviewing the functions of 19 statutory corporations, which would’ve resulted in some of them being closed, others merged, and private sector involvement in the operations of those SOEs, where practical.

    Several employees were subsequently retrenched from Transport Board, Drainage Unit and National Conservation Commission, there were talks about consolidating or merging the operations of the Welfare Department, National Assistance Board, Poverty Alleviation, Rural Development Commission and Urban Development Commission, while Beautify Barbados was ‘closed’ and its functions outsourced to a company owned by Mark Maloney.

    And, I’m sure you recall, prior to the 2018 general elections, several people from Christ Church East, which was then represented by Denis Lowe, were employed at NCC, (a SOE that fell under Lowe’s portfolio when he was Minister of the Environment and Drainage), with some being ‘appointed.’

    Perhaps Mr. Morris could use those developments as a basis to present a more in depth discussion about “political distractions.”

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  24. Verla: Settle nurses issues, not grandstand

    Now is not the time for grandstanding says President of the Democratic Labour Party (DLP) Verla De Peiza who yesterday urged the Government and the Unity Workers Union (UWU) to instead come to a resolution to settle the ongoing nurses’ unrest in Barbados.
    She suggested that symbolic gestures or being unyielding on this issue was not in the best interest of the nurses or Barbadians, whose health was at stake.
    “The nurses have had a rough time for a long time and it was exacerbated by COVID-19. The nurses need people to be standing up for and supporting them. Last year this time we were clapping, this year we are clapping back at them and that cannot be how we intend to treat nurses.
    “A glow-in-the-dark coin is not going to solve their problems, they need to have hard solutions and it calls for level heads,” De Peiza said.
    She made these comments yesterday at Jamoon Bar in Workmans, St George, as she supported DLP candidate for St George South, Dawn-Marie Armstrong, who organised a Christmas event during which they provided meals for about 200 people.
    Protest action
    Her comments also follow protest action by some disgruntled nurses of the Senator Caswell Franklyn-led UWU who have been staging industrial action over the Government’s COVID-19 safe zones, what they believe is vaccine coercion and many long-standing issues such as training and wages.
    On Friday, joint coordinator of the National Vaccination Programme Dr Elizabeth Ferdinand said that 40 per cent of the vaccination centres were closed since the strike began about two weeks ago. Franklyn, who was accused of gloating, however, estimated the impact was much larger.
    Prime Minister Mia Amor Mottley asked why Franklyn would paralyse the vaccination drive during a pandemic and Senator the Most Honourable Jerome Walcott also urged other political parties to speak out.
    Echoing the statement of DLP’s spokesperson
    for Health Andre Worrell, De Peiza stressed that throwing fuel on the fire was not needed. She urged the parties involved to do better.
    “I heard that I was called out to speak and then I was told what I was supposed to say . . . . But it doesn’t call for ranting. It is not our fight but the DLP hopes that Government as employer of the nurses, and the unions, will climb down off their high horses, understand that the nurses are at the centre of the dispute and find resolution to their issues. This is not a point for grandstanding, this is the time to demonstrate that you actually care,” De Peiza said.
    (TG)

    Source: Nation

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  25. The choice of party leader
    By Ezra Alleyne I was going to write about the Canadian case which helps our offshore sector which has just been decided in the Canadian Supreme Court. That will have to wait.
    Events last week here and abroad caused me to focus my attention on political power, as I tried to nurture my body back to optimum health, a deficiency balanced by the increased sharpness of my observation of examples of political power.
    British Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s party has just lost a by election in a seat which was held by the Conservative Party for something like 200 years. It makes one think… and it boggles the mind. Voters are vexed, blue vex with him and his party. Members of Parliament are revolting. His leadership is slipping Now I do not care much about Boris Johnson’s political fortunes except as an example of the use or misuse of prime ministerial power But then yesterday morning news in another section of the press, spoke about a December 3 meeting at which it is reported that a plot to oust Democratic Labour Party (DLP) President Verla De Peiza as political leader was on the agenda.
    How does news of a projected change of a political leader of the DLP get into the news?
    And if the news is accurate why so late in the day? Polls are due in 18 months . . . for crying out loud. Here is how the report goes: “The main concern is that she is not resonating with Barbadians. That is the number one thing, meaning that Barbadians just don’t see her as an alternative leader.
    Can we secure victory with her at the helm? Those are the main questions,” the source explained.
    Key cornerstones
    In Verla’s defence these views cannot be those of experienced politicos? Politics does not work like that.
    The DLP is one of the key cornerstones of our two party democracy; and win, lose or draw (although it is more lose than anything at the moment), that party remains in existence though weakened from time to time by these nonsensical shenanigans.
    All Barbadians should raise their voices against this move.
    Yet, the mud thickens:“We would be going into the election with Richard Sealy as the political leader, although De Peiza remains the president.
    So you would no longer see the president bringing down the curtains on political meetings when the political leader is there. You would be rallying around the political leader as opposed to the president,” said the source.
    “For this to happen, the candidates would have to choose a ‘first among equals’ where the candidate chooses this person as our political leader.”
    Mind you Sealy does not appear to have been at the meeting. In my opinion, the choice of a party leader is something which should not be left to amateurs. When, for example, in December 1961, the DLP chose Errol Barrow to be Premier instead of anointing Theodore Brancker, the then titular Leader of the Opposition as Premier, they knew
    what they were doing.
    Those who had the power then combined it with responsibility; for as I know from my 1990s conversations with Sir James Tudor, he often opined that power has to be used responsibly. As he often said: “Power without responsibility is the prerogative of the harlot.”
    Quietly decided
    So, when in 1993 Sir Henry Forde, Sir David Simmons and Dame Billie Miller and others reflected on the state of politics and the leadership, they quietly decided that the late Owen Arthur should become leader and they gave him a good three-year run as leader.
    It was done and properly announced and the Barbados Labour Party (BLP) fell in behind the new leader when in 1994 all hell broke loose in the DLP government.
    Why can’t the DLP do their business neatly and efficiently? This business of President and political leader being different people is horse radish left in the sun. The Dems have tried it before in 1994 with disastrous results.
    Barbados deserves better than this.
    By using power responsibly, the Tom Adams and succeeding BLP administrations were able to ensure that local offshore banking legislation properly dovetailed with Canadian laws. Hence the recent decision that will help Barbadians keep jobs and assist the country in developing our offshore sector and earning foreign exchange.
    While we are thinking of power being exercised, I have often wondered why we let Intel leave this country.
    Was it truly a matter of not extending the tax holiday?
    They carried some of our best managers with them. The choice of a leader, any leader is important business.

    Ezra Alleyne is an attorney and former Deputy Speaker of the House of Assembly.


    Source: Nation

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  26. I Will have to listen to the Press conference again

    But what i thought i heard from NUPW and the nurses union was what was going on with they union negotiation with government. And a distancing of any strike action
    I do not view this as a condemnation of franklyn , his union ir the striking nurses

    I do not know the conditions for their involvement In the Press conference But i Think forces or agreed to participate they Were very careful and diplomatic In what their Said

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  27. @ NorthernObserverDecember 20, 2021 1:35 AM

    “Some of the issues Franklyn wants addressed for the nurses are: better pay, health insurance, remuneration for degrees, advancement, continuous training and better working conditions”
    Mentioned days ago this was about money. And benefits.”

    That is what matters if you are NOT self employed.

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  28. Did government walk away from the table or failed to show up to a scheduled meeting?

    Did gov say NO to any of the main concerns that “caused” the strike?

    When or on which concerns did the parties resched an impass?

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  29. It is a pity that EA will not discuss the constitutional knot of GP3. I was under the impression that constitutional matters was his area of expertise.

    Meanwhile, EA and other BLP pundits try to pick the leader of the DLP.

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  30. Excellent 👍 response by Verla on this matter. Her measured tone is a sign of leadership and an understanding of the complexity of the situation.

    You go girl.

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  31. Some other quarters are distancing themselves from what they see as the point of no return and THEY ARE RIGHT…..i wont want to be associated with wannabe dictators and wannabe slave masters either….even though that’s all they have aspired to in the last half century….but no one wants SHIT STICKING TO THEM……bad optics, bad business.

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  33. Trying to force/bully/push something on the Black Afrikan population that no one WITH INTELLIGENCE has the appetite for anymore will garner MASSIVE PUSH BACK…..so give it ya best shot and see where all those HALLUCINATIONS get ya….

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  35. Strike deal

    Caswell: Protest will end if nurses satisfied

    by COLVILLE MOUNSEY colvillemounsey@nationnews.com
    SENATOR CASWELL FRANKLYN says he is willing to call off the nurses strike provided that yesterday’s announced deal satisfies his members.
    Government yesterday announced that a consensus was reached with the Barbados Nurses Association (BNA) on several of the longstanding issues, which have prompted an ongoing strike led by Franklyn’s Unity Workers’ Union.
    Speaking at a virtual press conference to announce the parameters of the new deal, Minister of Health and Wellness, The Most Honourable Jeffrey Bostic disclosed that following the conclusion of a two-day meeting with the BNA, Government has committed to resolving a slew of issues relating to working conditions, late payment, allowances, hazard pay and appointments.
    Shortly after the press conference, Franklyn told the DAILY NATION that while he considered it laughable, Government’s decision to negotiate the grievances of his union members with another entity, he will review the full list of concessions with his members and will call off the strike once they meet the mark.
    Who gets credit
    “The Barbados Nurses Association did not have an issue, so it is quite disingenuous for Government to negotiate with them on our issues. However, I do not care who they want to give the credit to as long as the nurses that I represent get what they are entitled to. With that said, I would call off the strike now if the nurses got what they want; this is what I have been asking for and I do not care who they sat down and pretended that they were negotiating with,” said Franklyn.
    The outspoken trade unionist added: “As far as I am aware the issues that they discussed are the issues that the Unity Workers Union put on the table. If the Government is so shameless as to settle our issues with another organisation because they don’t want to deal with Caswell Franklyn, I do not have a problem with that; all I want is for the nurses to get what is theirs.”
    Yesterday, Bostic disclosed that on the issue of appointments, having done 335 appointments of nurses, only five are outstanding and those will be done in short order. He further noted that any others that were overlooked will be submitted by the BNA for consideration. The minister revealed that it was agreed that some form of transportation must be provided for nurses at rural facilities during unsociable hours.
    He said that this was an agreement in principle which is expected to be put in place for the new year once all of the details are worked out. It was decided that Government would be considering the issue of uniform allowances and that a proposal will be submitted to the Ministry of Public Service by the end of this year. It was acknowledged that these allowances were not revised since 2009.
    A review of allowances with the entire public service is to be undertaken in the next fiscal year. In the meantime, the nurses are to be issued with scrubs instead of the traditional uniforms and at least one ceremonial uniform will be issued. It was also decided that committees will be established to tackle the issue of lack of communication while the environmental condition under which nurses operate at some facilities is to be addressed.
    Commitment
    During the press conference, Bostic made it clear that the commitment made by Government was to redound to the benefit of all nurses, noting that there was no one particular union in mind during the negotiation process. He also noted that the issues put forward by the Franklyn-led union were by no means new as these were problems lamented by the nursing fraternity for years and dated back to several administrations. However, he warned that while Government is committed to addressing all of the issues of the health care providers, some may need more time to be resolved.
    “It was not intended for any particular grouping, but we dealt with matters that would have been of relevance to all nurses. We were able to meet with the Barbados Nurses Association following established protocols and processes. We are happy and willing to meet with any union as long as those protocols and processes are followed. At this point in time, throughout the entire process, we would have met with all of the unions concerned,” he stressed.

    Source: Nation

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  36. Go Caswell…mission accomplished….doesn’t matter who gets the credit, they will look foolish claiming it,….

    don’t mind all the face saving SHITE TALK…

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  37. Seems like ALL nurses will benefit from Caswell’s led action, I wonder how the nurses in the other Union feel about their representatives castigating Caswell about the strike? Maybe Caswell will see a bump in his Union’s membership. Next question when will the order docking the pay of the strikers be rescinded?

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    • @Sargeant

      You will note that Caswells former school mate was careful to gift the credit to the BNA. The president of the BNA as if by rote in her prepared speech was effusive in her praise of the minister of health and government. Things to make observers ponder.


  38. I warned of double speak. I said that this whole thing was to “ sink” Caswell. That has , in my opinion , failed.
    However, impartial citizens will welcome that the nurses needs will be met.

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  39. @David

    I think most people can see beyond the mutual back slapping, anyone with half a brain can see that the announcement by the Most Honourable (gotta get the title right) Minister would not have happened without Caswell’s action.

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    • @Sargeant

      Although the 30 or 40 nurses/medical personnel reported to be controlled by Unity Workers is small at this time it would have negatively effected delivery of health services.

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