1 week ago
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President of the Public Service Union (PSU), Dean Flowers, is not a happy camper after receiving a letter from the new Labour Minister, Kareem Musa. As you may know, the union has been advocating for the workers at the Belize Tax Services Department (BTSD) as the government transitions to the statutory body, SARA. On November 5, the union issued a 21-day notice of industrial action to the then Labour Minister, Florencio Marin Jr. and the Labour Commissioner. The 21-days period expires tomorrow. It is a critical deadline, placing union’s general membership in a position to decide its next steps. Flowers spoke with Love News earlier today responding to Minister Musa’s declaration that there is no trade dispute. Minister Musa wrote in a letter dated yesterday, that, quote, “… please be advised that the proposed transition of the BTSD to a semi-autonomous Revenue Authority (SARA) has not been implemented. Accordingly, there is no trade dispute currently.” End of quote. That response did not sit well with PSU President Flowers, who said he was stunned that an attorney and newly installed minister would take such a position, especially given that the union had already formally reported a trade dispute under Section 11 of the Settlement of Disputes in Essential Services Act. PSU’s written reply, dated today, rejects Musa’s characterization and insists that the union is fully within its legal rights to declare a dispute.
Dean Flowers, President, PSU: “Given the response, the unacceptable, the comical response, because I think, and I say this you know trying to maintain the utmost of respect for the new minister, but really and truly his response can only be characterized as a joke. And I don’t know that I’m in a mood to humor him what he had sent to the union for him to then turn around and invent in the figment of his imagination as they would say that there is something called an alleged trade dispute leaves a whole lot to be desired from the new minister especially given that he would have have defended his acceptance of his appointment since it would appear they can now decide which one they accept and which one they do not accept. But given that he would have accepted his appointment as Minister of Labor, he would have said that you know what, there are several trade disputes before the ministry and I that I must address and the Prime Minister would have, in his wisdom, appointed me given my legal training and my legal background. But if you look at the response and you look at the legislation one has to ask themself, did the minister or has the minister even taken time to read the settlement in disputes, the Essential Services Act settlement in disputes legislation. You would have to ask yourself has the minister even taken the time to sit with the labor commissioner or the very learned deputy labor commissioner or to reach out to his honorable brother who has experience in these matters in the Ministry of Public service before he would have penned what I will simply categorize as nonsense to the union. I can reassure you that under the honorable Florencio Marin, a very amateurish decision or correspondence of this class or of this type would never have reached the desk of the president or the public service union. I can reassure you that and definitely under honorable Requena it definitely would not have occurred because he has dealt with several of them and so I really don’t know whether the good minister of labor took his own advice or whether he sought advice from the experts in the Ministry of Labor. I really can’t say. We categorically reject what he sent to us. And like I said, it’s sometimes it’s best you laugh these things are because the audacity of this gentleman to suggest that we have an alleged trade dispute. I mean I really would wonder what his professors at law school would think of such a response.”
In its written response, the PSU reminds the Minister that once a dispute is formally reported, the Minister’s role is not to question its existence but to take the steps mandated in the Act to promote settlement. Flowers warns that the Government cannot avoid its labour obligations by delaying implementation while workers’ concerns remain unresolved. With the 21-day notice expiring tomorrow, Flowers says the PSU’s general membership will now have to weigh the Government’s response and determine the union’s next course of action. This could range from further negotiations to escalating industrial action.
Dean Flowers, President, PSU: “The membership will dictate the pace at which we engage in any form of industrial actions against the government of Belize. I am hoping that we will touch a little bit more on this matter with the general membership tomorrow when the declaration of the trade dispute expires. And thereafter and guided by the membership and the council we will act accordingly to ensure that first and foremost that the revenues that will end up in the hands of the semi-autonomous body will continue to be made available to service the Belizean people and secondly to ensure that our members are not unfairly transferred, terminated, or forced to resign because of a policy that does not serve the best interests of the Belizean people or the workers within the Belize Tax Services Department in its current form and state and in the current manner in which the leadership in the Ministry of Finance is rolling it out.”
The PSU will meet tomorrow to chart a way forward. Love News will continue to follow this developing story.
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