Senator opposes government’s savings proposal

Senator Caswell Franklyn is once again questioning the legality of a
move by government.

During a Zoom press conference on Friday, the spokesman for the
People’s Party for Democracy and Development (PdP) harshly criticised
the Barbados Optional Savings Scheme (BOSS) proposal put forward by
Prime Minister Mia Amor Mottley and her economic team.

The scheme will see public servants working for more than $3,000
monthly being given the option of converting part of their salary into
bonds.

Ripping apart the proposal, Franklyn highlighted several issues,
including that under the Wages Protection Act, salaries are to be paid
only in legal tender.

“Legal tender is money, bills like the Grantleys ($100 note) we like
to see. Bonds are not legal tender, so you cannot give me a bond
because a bond is not legal tender,” he argued.

Furthermore, the Senator, who is also the head of the Unity Workers’
Union, said there is little trust for government paper at this time,
due to what occurred to bonds during the last restructuring exercise.

Accusing government of seeking to force public officers to accept the
scheme, he urged these individuals to reject it.

“You are forcing people to do something and saying they can volunteer.
They are not volunteering because it is not optional and they cannot
do that. You cannot require them to take their monies…and any employer
who does that breaches the law and could face the courts for it,” he
said.

In addition, Franklyn said that many public sector employees had not
had the ability to save in the pre-Covid-19 period and therefore would
be unable to do so now.

“They do not have anything to save, so when you give them compulsory
savings what they are going to do with them is lose their homes,” he
stated.

Earlier this month, Franklyn raised flags on the appointment of a
second Deputy Commissioner of Police, calling the post non-existent
under the Police Act.
(JMB)