Strike action likely to escalate

With no resolution in sight to the now seven-week-long nurses’ strike, the head of the Unity Workers’ Union (UWU) on Monday warned Government of escalated action.

In fact, according to Caswell Franklyn, some workers in other essential services have already started to withdraw their services in support of their nursing colleagues.

“If the Government does not sit down with us, we will be asking our members at the airport to take action,” he said after Monday’s protest. “And, in fact, some of the technicians at the airport called in sick today. The technicians are the people who operate the control tower and the lighting at the airport, and if they are off duty international flights will not be able to land, so if nothing is done, we will call out all of our members there.

“This is merely a shot across the bow hoping that Government will listen to our concerns,” the trade union leader warned.

The UWU has been leading scores of nurses in industrial action as they press for better working conditions, health insurance, better nurse-to-patient ratios, remuneration for degrees, advancement and continuous training, and better pay.

Franklyn dismissed the position taken by Prime Minister Mia Mottley that he was going about things “the wrong way”.

“Her actions have shown she does not know about industrial relations because if she did, she would not have got involved at the most basic level. She met with the nurses and members of the National Union of Public Workers who did not ask for a meeting. She took our proposals to them, but they only agreed to the most basic things, not the more substantial matters we wanted addressed,” he contended.

The UWU leader was also critical of Health and Wellness Minister Lt Col Jeffrey Bostic, who, according to him, “acknowledged that some of the issues the nurses are protesting were going on for at least a decade, yet he had three years in office and did nothing about them”.

He charged that the Queen Elizabeth Hospital and other health care facilities were in disarray, with patients not getting bathed daily or getting their food on time.

He also criticised the other unions representing nurses for not standing up for the health care workers.

“The other unions will get what is coming to them eventually. The nurses are satisfied with my representation because I started off with 60 nurses and now I am up to 180. They are not happy with the representation they are getting from the other unions who are now in bed with the Government,” the former opposition Senator said.

Saying that the current dispute was one of the longest strikes he could recall in his lifetime, Franklyn said he had faith the nurses would eventually get their due. (DH)