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Teachers, civil servants to 'meet' during school, work hours�
PHILIPSBURG--School classes and services at government offices are likely to be disrupted today, Thursday, as teachers and civil servants plan to hold an "urgent" and "very important" session with their unions starting at 7:30am.
The workers will be discussing a proposal made by Finance Minister Hiro Shigemoto in a meeting with representatives of the Windward Islands Teachers Union (WITU), ABVO civil servants union and Windward Islands Civil Servants Union/Private Sector Union (WICSU/PSU) on Wednesday.
WITU President Claire Elshot told The Daily Herald Wednesday night all members of WITU, ABVO and WICSU/PSU have been asked to attend the meeting at John Larmonie Centre.
Teachers and civil servants, including some Immigration officers, gathered outside the Government Administration Building Wednesday in a silent demonstration in support of WITU, ABVO and WICSU/PSU representatives who were meeting with Shigemoto on some of their grievances. Two teachers were seen with placards bearing the words "We are humans too," and "It's our money and we want it now," matching occasional chants.
Elshot told this newspaper Wednesday night that the minister had been asked to submit his proposal in writing. It will be used as a basis for today's discussions.
The union was originally set to meet its members late yesterday at the WIFOL building, but that meeting could not take place, as the Pelican workers were already in a meeting with their union there. WITU attempted to meet its members in the parking lot, but mosquito-like insects called midges disrupted the meeting.
Proposal
Shigemoto told the unions he was not in a position to grant the workers' request to pay their full cost-of-living adjustment in February, as the decision to split the previously agreed payment over two years had been "passed" by the Council of Ministers and by the St. Maarten Parliament.
Elshot said Shigemoto had told the union that Parliament's decision cannot be changed because he was still awaiting approval of the budget from the Committee for Financial Supervision CFT, which was expected around February 17.
The 5.3 per cent payment, which had to be paid in full this year, was split to help cover a deficit in the 2011 budget. In keeping with the split, workers would be paid two per cent this year and 3.3 per cent in 2012 ? an arrangement over which the workers and their unions are in uproar.
Elshot told the workers their Parliamentarians, a number of whom were in the crowd, had voted for the split in the payment. Several National Alliance (NA) Members of Parliament (MPs), including Hyacinth Richardson, were quick to point out that the NA had voted firmly against the 2011 budget that contained the changes to split the cost-of-living adjustment for the workers.
United People's (UP) party MP Romain Laville told reporters after the meeting that he did not have all the information at hand and that he would gather information on it. He said it was time to take the business of the people seriously (see related story).
Elshot said Shigemoto had told the union it could approach him again in four to six months to see whether the additional 3.3 could be paid earlier than 2012. This announcement from Elshot drew a sharp reaction from the gathering of workers, who shouted, "No, no, no!"
"Can we stay home for six months?" one worker asked.
"Can the minister pay my loan at WIB?" shouted another.
Elshot said the union had not been notified by government that "our pockets will be pickpocketed" before the decision had been taken to breach the agreement to pay the adjustment. She said the other Dutch islands were not experiencing "austerity measures" like those to which workers in St. Maarten were being subjected.
The union was told that the two per cent adjustment had been incorporated into the salaries of teachers and would be paid along with their January salaries this Friday.
The union had also requested that the Department of Salary and Wages be supplied, within one week, with personnel from within the internal government structure to fill the critical vacancies, to speed up the processing of wages and the changes to the wages of the workers in a timely fashion starting February.
Shigemoto said during yesterday's meeting that someone was already being trained for this department, Elshot said. He considered this point "carried."
On the issue of overtime, the Elshot said the minister had informed the union that workers would not be paid for overtime taken without the expressed consent of the Secretaries General of their ministries. Elshot advised the workers not to take overtime without first informing their bosses. "Don't take it upon yourself to work overtime," she said.
The unions had requested that Government "respect the laws" on overtime and that those workers from the Salary and Wages Department and all other departments who had worked overtime in December 2010 be duly compensated for their work based on provisions in the law.
On the issue of vacation allowance, Elshot said the minister had informed the union that the six per cent vacation allowance would be paid in June. The union had requested that the vacation allowance be paid to all workers in the second half of June based on the minister's letter to the unions dated January 23.
Elshot also updated members on the automatic compensation to be paid to those in salary scales equal to those in the teaching profession, based on the fact that the performance management evaluations had not been done with all civil servants in all departments.
Workers present were not too pleased with the minister's proposal. Several of them said they were not satisfied with the outcome of the meeting.
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