BCC staff want more concern for health, safety

Some members of staff at the Barbados Community College (BCC) feel the school’s administration is doing very little to safeguard them in the COVID-19 environment as they nervously wait for the viral illness to strike at the Eyrie campus.

Staff claim that official notification of positive cases of COVID-19 is being withheld from them, a display of disrespect which they shouldn’t have to endure in this time of a pandemic.

Upset staff, who spoke on the condition of anonymity, maintained that this lack of respect is only the tip of the iceberg. They charged that apart from learning about the positive case through the grapevine over the weekend, College administration has yet to formally inform other departments or even the general public who would have engaged staff from the accounts department.

But, principal Annette Alleyne is challenging any talk of a lack of attention to safety matters, telling Barbados TODAY that her administration adheres to the protocols and regulations of the Ministry of Health.

“For the entire period of COVID we have been following the directives from the Ministry of Health and Wellness and the COVID Monitoring Unit. I’ve been in contact with them up to this morning. This morning I also shared the document from the COVID Monitoring Unit with the staff of the College and whatever relevant communication or pertinent information is also shared with the staff of the College,” she said.

The issue with staff came to a head after three colleagues recently tested positive for COVID-19. Reliable sources at the Howell’s Cross Road, St. Michael campus told this newspaper that on Friday, October 29 a member of staff from the accounts department tested positive and an ad hoc meeting was held. The department was subsequently closed.

According to them, the principal informed all college staff of the closure via a letter that was circulated today, but in the letter, no reason was given. It noted: “Payments cannot be made at the Accounts Department at the College during the period November 1-5, but that service will resume from November 8, 2021.”

Additionally, on Sunday a worker from the auxiliary team also tested positive and again BCC staff claimed they were not notified.

“Would you imagine that workers from auxillary, who would have mixed and mingled with their colleague, reported for work like normal yesterday (Monday) because they weren’t told the person tested positive? They were told that they had to work throughout the day and weren’t even told anything of contact tracing or if they should get tested. These are the people who move throughout the tight spaces at the College to do their job. We think our situation is urgent…. Obviously, people are fearful. This is a serious threat and they aren’t even telling us anything, they aren’t contact tracing. We have to decide for ourselves to go and get tested,” a staff member told Barbados TODAY.

One of their major grouses revolves around the intimate spaces in the different departments where staff is expected to function. The Student Affairs department where an estimated ten employees work at the same time was highlighted. The staff members suggested that the space is laid out in an open floor plan but the cubicles have no glass partitions to act as physical barriers from possible infection.

Barbados TODAY has learnt that earlier this evening an email was sent to students informing them that Student Affairs was now closed and will resume conducting business from November 8. Even though the email did not indicate the reason, a source said this was as a result of a positive Covid case in that department.

“It seems unfortunate that someone in the office of Student Affairs has tested positive and it is now closed but no department has received this information. Offices are being closed as a result of positive tests and we are just sitting ducks waiting for death to grab us. The Accounts department had a meeting today via Zoom with the same employees, even the one who tested positive, they are expected to work on reports while they are off. Imagine they are not told to go and be tested, according to my information many have not. Some persons have taken the initiative to pay for their tests. As much as $350. The management at the BCC are beyond reckless with the lives of the employees and their families. The principal seems only to care about saving face and by extension, is contributing to the rising of Covid-19,” the source charged.

Another staffer, said that while this past July they received a letter informing them of the cancellation of flexi-time and working from home, given the increasing COVID -19 deaths and daily new cases, they again broached the idea of staggered shifts for workers so that social distancing could be better achieved in the limited space.

“We have been told no outright,” the worker said.

Asked directly about this claim, Alleyne responded: “I can’t speak to those matters.”

A fourth member of staff called Alleyne’s response “unsatisfactory” and accused her of trivializing the very serious matter. The employee said the situation will leave staff with no choice but to seek other recourse.

“It is a situation that is worsening. The BCC administration is not doing anything to make staff feel comfortable in the environment that they’re working in. . . . People have family members dying around them, they know the COVID-19 reality. So it isn’t something to be treated in a trivial way. It is a serious thing and people are obviously afraid- some of them too afraid to even come out and have a supported front. I don’t know why something like this should be treated in this manner.

“It can’t be satisfactory to send out an email from time-to-time to tell people follow guidelines. People don’t check emails every day or have time to check emails. But sending out an email is good if you are discussing formulating a meeting or doing something. But sending out an email cannot be good when lives are at stake and that is why staff is scared. At this stage they should be saying, ‘I have these things in place and where we don’t have them in place, we are making provisions to have them in place’ because of course this is an ongoing thing’. We have staff who we have to protect from each other, from the public, all those kinds of things. That is something that you should easily, in a flash be telling somebody. So what is the difficulty? That’s what we don’t understand. What’s the secrecy in hiding up when someone tests positive?” the employee asked. (KC)