SANITATION WORKERS TO PROTEST

August 16, 2006

Tomorrow sanitation workers from the two sanitation companies in Belize City will take to the streets to protest against their current job and salary crisis.  Workers from Belize Maintenance Limited and Sanitation Enterprises Limited will gather at the headquarters of B-M-L on Iguana Street at eight tomorrow morning.From there they will take some of the main streets of Belize City, passing in front of the Belize City Council on North Front Street, before heading to the Berger Field on Vernon Street.The National Workers Union represents a little over 75 percent of the workers from both B-M-L and S-E-L combined. Second Vice President of the Union, Joseph Martinez says the protest is geared towards getting the attention of the powers that be. 

Joseph Martinez: Second Vice President of the National Workers Union

“What you say then the message for everybody, all those who are in power, whoever it may be, while the elephant is running around, we don’t want to be trampled like grass. Our workers need their jobs and sanitation is an essential service. We’re sending a message telling all authorities, please we need our jobs and sanitation is an essential service.” 

The National Trade Union Congress of Belize has also been involved in dialogue with the parties concerned.  Secretary General of the N-T-U-C-B, George Frazer, told us today that what that union’s involvement is in the matter. 

George Frazer: Secretary General of the N-T-U-C-B

“The Trade Union Congress was approached by the leaders of the National Worker Union. We convened a meeting last night to hear their concerns. We have been following what has been happening out there through the media and we are very concerned especially for the welfare of the workers. We are concerned again that games are being played when it comes to the contracts, payments of the contracts and all that goes along with it involving Central Government and the city Council. The bottom line is that there are over a hundred workers, many of them single mothers, whose lively hood and that of their family is very much now at risk. We know that BML has suspended operations as of last week Friday, I think it is. Garbage and things are pilling up in those areas on south side which their contract covers. These workers out their now have bills to pay, school will soon be open and we cannot allow that.” 

Frazer said because sanitation is an essential service, a breach of contract has occurred if sanitation workers have gone on strike.

 George Frazer: Secretary General of the N-T-U-C-B

“We were also looking at the Trade Union Act Section thirty five which tells you plain, there is a breech of contract there, whether it is government, whether it is Statutory body, whether it is any company that has legal obligations, especially those areas that are essential services and the sanitation service are among those essential services. You can’t just go out there and do strikes; you have to give 21 days notice to the government through the Minister of Labor and again the Labor Commissioner. There are serious implications for the City, the health and the welfare of the city. There are even more serious implications for the jobs the welfare of the workers and their families, the BML workers are without jobs right now. We discussed the issues last night, the Trade Union Congress along with the National Workers Union. We looked at the law, so we saw essential services, government has to protect the interest there because if the workers go out there and strike and do things without giving the 21 days notice that is by law, they can be fired. The BML management, we understand, told them “we don’t have any jobs for you because we don’t have any money to pay you, we’re not getting paid.” That’s the situation so the workers were told “we don’t have any work for you”. but we since this morning August 16 as a result of our deliberation and discussion last night decided, let them go back and report to work, the BML workers and if it should happen with SEL the same thin. Go and report, you all have contracts, legally binding contracts, just like how these companies have contracts with the city council and whatever. These people have to work out their scheme.” 

We asked Frazer who is obligated to give the government the 21-day notice of a strike. 

George Frazer: Secretary General of the N-T-U-C-B

“If it’s the union that is calling a strike then they should do it. The company also has legal obligations. Trade Union Act section 35 part 2; if a person employed by the government or a local authority, statutory body or any company or contractor upon whom is imposed by act the duty or who has otherwise assumed the duty of supplying any city, town village or place or any part there of with electricity or water, railway, health, sanitary or medical services, communications or any other service that may by order be declared by the minister to be a public service and not only public but essential willfully and maliciously breaks a contract of service with the government such statutory body  company or contractor knowing and having reasonable cause to believe the probable consequence of his so doing either alone or in combination with others will be to cause injury or danger or great inconvenience  to the community, he commits an offence and its liable. So each worker has to sign a contract. You can’t just tell the worker to go out. You know they have labor laws that state that for example you have natural disaster for example earthquake, hurricane, flood and services have to be suspended, well you can avoid that, but this is a man made disaster. We plan to have meetings either today or tomorrow with the mayor and her team to hear their side of the story. We plan to meet with both Mr. Rupert Marin of SEL and Mr. Laurence Ellis separately to hear their side of the story and see what can be done.” 

Last week S-E-L paid off their workers the payments that were due them for the previous weeks, but B-M-L workers have not been working because they have not received their salaries and are also owed half their pay for the last three weeks.

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