Cay Hill:--- Workers at the St. Maarten Laboratory Services (SLS) met with their union representatives on Monday night and early Tuesday morning as they plan to take action strategically against the abuse of the medical staff of SLS.
President of the Windward Islands Civil Servant Union (WICSU) Derri Leonard who was at the St. Maarten Medical Center Tuesday morning said in an invited comment that the Management of SLS namely its director Jose Booi has been abusing the workers of SLS. Leonard said she already requested a meeting with the Minister of Health Dr. Cornelius de Weever to discuss the concerns of the workers and if the workers and the union are not satisfied with the outcome of that meeting then the SLS workers will begin industrial action. Leonard said that she still has to meet with the Management of SLS and the Minister of Health prior to allowing the workers to take action.
General Secretary of WISCU, William Reed said that one of the concerns of the union right now is how the director (Jose Booi) of SLS is treating local workers. Reed said that the "Team Leader" of SLS is a pensioner that works part-time for SLS and someone who does not show up to work for several days. Reed said when this happens one of the local staff members who has been working at the laboratory on St. Maarten for over 40 years has to take up the task of the team leader. Reed explained that the team leader Ludis Richardson's contract was renewed twice under the nose of the workers and the union even though she is not working full time and not showing up for work.
Reed said the situation has been ongoing for quite some time now but since the St. Maarten Medical Center and SLS are the two main entities that have to deal with the healthcare of the community the WICSU tried as hard as possible to minimize their actions since it would affect the entire community.
Reed said that SLS has been having problems for over seven or eight years and the union had to take drastic actions by striking twice to get the attention of the former Minister of Health. Reed said the abuse of medical workers has been going on so long and St. Maarten has been a "cash cow" for the former ADC Laboratory. Reed further explained that St. Maarten fought hard and got their own laboratory but it behooves them that the director of SLS is someone who worked for ADC Curacao Management and this person has penalized workers on St. Maarten in the past. "St. Maarten accepted Booi and they did not investigate him or even check his leadership and educational background. As far as the union is concerned, this is a huge conflict of interest to take a former director of ADC and make him the director of SLS." Reed said the position was available but no one on St. Maarten took the time to investigate the applicant's background. "This is the second time the union had to intervene, the first time the Supervisory Board of the St. Maarten Medical Center had to be called in to see how this person is treating local employees. One of his tactics is that he is instigating confusion among the employees to create the "divide and rule" policy. However, the workers realized what he has been doing and his scheme has been exposed."
Reed said one of the workers that has been working for 40 years in the hospital has been substituting for the team leader and she was given an allowance but since she voiced her opinion on how the team leader's contract was renewed the worker in question cannot get her allowance when she substitutes for the team leader. Reed said the director has taken the matter to a personal level such that he is penalizing her by not paying her what is due to her. Reed further explained that a pensioner cannot be a team leader and keeping her in the position is keeping back the qualified workers who have been doing the work. Reed said that the union's intention is to inform the Minister of Health of the conflict of interest with Booi and they will also inform the labour mediator Derrick Holiday.
In a invited comment, Minister of Health Cornelius de Weever said that the WICSU did request a meeting with him and he asked the union to provide him with the agenda points that they want to discuss when the meeting is called. Minister de Weever said as soon as he gets the agenda from WICSU he will schedule a meeting.
