Union settles some SSA matters; promotions, appointments coming!

The island’s largest public sector trade union is reporting significant progress in bringing closure to a series of outstanding issues affecting Sanitation Service Authority (SSA) workers.

After meeting with the SSA employees on Thursday morning to update them on the developments and to get feedback, Deputy General Secretary of the National Union of Public Workers (NUPW) Wayne Walrond announced that the employees would receive an increase in their washing allowance from April while more than 100 new appointments and promotions are expected to take effect around the end of March.

Walrond said while recent discussions with the board also agreed to review the level of hazard pay for those who collect and dispose of refuse, that contentious issue was still under negotiation.

“We agreed that the regrading of posts would be a complex one, so we thought that tackling the hazard pay allowance would be less complicated and we are negotiating that. But we were successful in getting the washing allowance increase. That is supposed to start from April,” he told Barbados TODAY in an interview.

“We were successful in getting the board to agree to all of the appointments, over a hundred and something positions and then over 50 promotions. So this is good news. That must be done hopefully by the end of March,” Walrond revealed.

He said he hoped the union and the board could soon return to the discussion table to address the proposed hike in hazard pay.

“It is currently $13 and some cents, but we are looking to get the hazard pay increased. That is a work in progress. I think we have reaped a measure of success,” Walrond pointed out.

He said the matter of some SSA workers leaving the NUPW to join the Caswell Franklyn-led Unity Workers’ Union (UWU) was also raised during the talks.

“We are committed to continuing as the accredited bargaining agent for the workers, to represent the workers. Our members are not to be side-tracked by any person having their right to association. You have to respect that,” Walrond argued.

But he said that ultimately, his union as the accredited bargaining agent has a responsibility to represent the workers individually and collectively.

Meanwhile, Walrond is appealing to members of the public to stop their attacks and threats against sanitation workers while on the road executing their jobs.

He was referring to a number of recent incidents where some Barbadians claimed to have been offended by certain workers.

However, the NUPW senior official has suggested that even if an SSA employee offended a member of the public, they should not take the law into their own hands, but rather use the appropriate channels to achieve a resolution.

“We are really disturbed that there would be any altercation or attack on sanitation workers who are already risking their lives being exposed to rats, being exposed to toxic chemicals and the residuals from chemicals in the garbage. It is unacceptable that these workers are faced with threats to their lives while making sacrifices to ensure Barbados is kept clean,” Walrond declared.

“We would impress on members of the public to allow sanitation workers to work with a level of comfort. We know the majority of Barbadians are very happy that sanitation workers do a good job. Once the trucks are there, the garbage will be collected. But having said that, we can’t condone these repeated attacks on sanitation workers.

“It can impact on them feeling comfortable working, especially if it’s a certain area, it can impact on the collection of garbage and how comfortably they can carry out their work. If you have a grievance with a worker, there are channels for conflict resolution. Direct confrontation is not the way to go. If you feel that a sanitation worker has offended you as a member of the public or a customer, you know you can channel your concerns to management or if it’s a police matter you have your civil rights,” Walrond suggested.

emmanueljoseph@barbadostoday.bb