Bleak Xmas for NCRHA security officers

Health Minister Dr Lackram Bodoe, right, and NCRHA chairman Dr Tim Gopeesingh. FILE PHOTO -

WITH just days to go before Christmas, security officers working with Safety Investigations Security Services – which has been contracted by the North Central Regional Health Authority (NCRHA) – say they are bearing the brunt of a financial and bureaucratic stand-off between their employer and the RHA, with some workers claiming not being paid since September.

A senior operations officer at the company told Newsday on December 19 that the wage crisis stemmed from the NCRHA’s failure to settle outstanding payments for contracted services, leaving the security company without the financial means to pay its employees.

However, NCRHA chairman and former education minister Dr Tim Gopeesingh pointed to what he described as years of inherited financial mismanagement at the authority, including a massive backlog of debts owed to suppliers amounting to $321 million.

In a phone interview with Newsday, a company official acknowledged the workers’ frustration but said the situation was beyond management’s immediate control. “We understand how they feel, but until we are paid, we cannot pay them,” the official said.

Asked if employees had been kept informed, the official said management had communicated the situation.

One female officer, who spoke on condition of anonymity for fear of victimisation, said the prolonged delay has forced painful personal sacrifices.

“I haven’t bought any Christmas gifts for my children, and Christmas is less than a week away. I will have to borrow money just to buy groceries,” she said. Another employee said he was in the process of securing alternative employment.

Newsday also spoke with an accountant at the company, who said efforts were being made to resolve the issue before Christmas but no guarantees could be made. "If we don’t have it (financial disbursement from government) we cannot pay it,” she said.

Another company representative said ongoing funding challenges at the NCRHA have left the firm struggling to meet its salary obligations, despite repeated assurances that payments were forthcoming.

“We have been waiting and speaking to everyone we can regarding payments. Funding is the issue. They’re not paying us.”

According to the company, payments were curtailed even before the change in government, and when funds are paid, they amount to roughly five per cent of the total invoiced sum.

“When they gave us a payment last month, we paid staff immediately,” the representative said. “As soon as we get a cheque, we remit payments right away to the officers.”

Gopeesingh:

I inherited this

Responding to the concerns, NCRHA chairman Dr Gopeesingh said the authority inherited severe financial irregularities, including debt owing to service providers stretching back several years.

Interviewed on December 19, Gopeesingh said when the current board assumed office, it inherited debts to 521 service providers amounting to $321 million.

“We have been slowly trying to pay off most of the suppliers. We have now reduced that number to about 100 suppliers and have settled payments for over 300 suppliers so far, with approval from the Ministry of Health,” he said.

He explained that funding secured during the midterm review allowed the authority to clear a significant portion of the debt, but audits uncovered serious breaches in procurement practices spanning more than a decade.

“We found security companies operating without contracts for 18 years and cleaning and janitorial companies working since 2017 without any contracts,” Gopeesingh said.

He said janitorial services were costing the authority approximately $44 million annually, while security services amounted to about $32 million per year.

As a result, the NCRHA requested full documentation from all suppliers to verify whether goods and services – for which payments are now being demanded – were properly delivered.

“We cannot make payments without contracts and approvals. To do so would be grossly irresponsible and financially negligent,” Gopeesingh said.

He added the authority is considering commissioning an external professional audit firm to further investigate irregular spending that diverted funds away from patient care.

The NCRHA, he said, is now strictly adhering to procurement legislation, with all contracts being tendered in accordance with the law. He declined to say whether investigations could result in criminal charges, noting enquiries are ongoing.