BICO workers to continue strike over pay, safety issues

Employees of ice cream maker and cold store BICO are on strike, citing long-standing concerns over pay, health and safety conditions, and accusing management of disrespect. The industrial action which began on Wednesday morning has the backing of the Barbados Workers’ Union (BWU).

The BWU’s lead negotiator for BICO, Alexandria Thomas, confirmed that workers would remain off the job until their grievances were addressed or there was a satisfactory outcome from ongoing talks at the Labour Department. 

“We are going to stand with the workers until we receive any word from management and until the processes through the Labour Department have been sorted,” she declared.

Key among the employees’ concerns are outdated health and safety standards, which the union claims have been neglected. According to Thomas, BICO’s facilities have not undergone industrial cleaning for over three years, and the company continues to use combined bathroom facilities for men, women, and the public, without upgrades for years. 

“There have been a number of health and safety issues here at BICO…. These are critical issues that need to be discussed,” Thomas declared during a demonstration outside the company’s Harbour Road, St Michael headquarters.

The union representative also highlighted wage negotiations which she said have been ongoing for seven years without resolution. Many workers, Thomas noted, have been stuck at the same pay rates since 2015, 2016, or 2017. 

BICO workers downed tools today. (HG)

“We are of the view that we cannot allow workers to sit in a productive company, a company that is making a profit on a daily basis off the workers’ backs, and not allow them to have any wage increase for more than seven years,” she argued.

Thomas expressed frustration with what she described as management’s “complete disrespect” towards the workers, citing poor communication and a failure to address issues raised by employees. She insisted that the BWU would continue to support the strike until the company took meaningful steps to resolve the workers’ concerns.

BICO chairman Edwin Thirwell had not responded to a request for comment from Barbados TODAY up to the time of publication. (EJ)