SSA workers express health concerns

Work by staff of the Sanitation Service Authority (SSA) came to a temporary standstill yesterday when personnel staged a work stoppage in the morning.

The workers did so over their concerns about several health-related issues. They voiced these to their union, represented by National Union of Public Workers’ (NUPW) Assistant General Secretary, Wayne Waldron, while on the compound of the SSA headquarters.

Their concerns included those about what safety and health measures were being implemented in response to the coronavirus (COVID-19), the need for a group medical plan for workers, having a hazard allowance and a call for the reestablishment of a Health and Safety Committee.

Waldron met briefly with management of the SSA and the Environment Minister, Trevor Prescod on the compound. However, greater talks about the workers’ concerns occurred in a private meeting later that day at the National Petroleum Corporation.

The Health Ministry’s Dr. Karen Broome also visited the SSA’s headquarters to speak to workers about COVID-19 and how they can safeguard themselves.

Speaking to media prior to the private meeting, Waldron said, “I think the workers received the information from Dr. Broome in terms of a better understanding of the coronavirus and what protective measure they can put in place to safeguard themselves.”

He added going forward, “the basic housekeeping like how you respond to influenza and other ailments are the ongoing things that should be done even outside the coronavirus. So we would emphasise the need for management to make sure they have the necessary sanitary facilities in place like [sanitisers] to ensure that outside even the coronavirus, we are ensuring safety and health standards that are acceptable to protect the workers and all alike.”

Also speaking prior to the private meeting, the Environment Minister said the matter relating to the group medical health plan for workers was one that was engaging the government’s attention.

“The management has already received quotes from all the private insurance companies, the management has already forwarded the correspondence and the recommendations to the Ministry of Finance. The Ministry of Finance has to comment on it. Obviously, when you are putting a medical plan in place…, you have to really go into great details because you don’t want to start something you can’t end and we have to be able to sustain that programme on a long-term basis.”

He added, “the matter goes from Finance to any of the relevant ministries and then it comes to the Cabinet of Barbados, we have discussions on it and the Cabinet then makes its approval, but obviously the union would have to be involved in the process as well because if you are going to introduce an important instrument such as health insurance, we would not do that unless we also consult with the administrators of the main union that is responsible for the workers here at the Sanitation Department.” (MG)