PHILIPSBURG:--- "The One St. Maarten People Party has been following with keen attention the developments within the RBC Bank in particular as it pertains to those workers that are being sent home", says Lenny Priest, Interim Leader of the OSPP.
Our first reaction is to implore the Ministry of Labour officials, among others, to move incisively on this matter. Thirteen employees (to begin with) in a small community, is a significant number. They represent thirteen families that will be without an income earner in a sluggish economy. Retrenching thirteen employees at the same time amounts to mass dismissal, very much like the Pelican situation, but should not be left to wear itself out as in the Pelican saga.
According to Caribbean Banking Business Update of RBC the bank is boosting record earnings for the year to date, with a 12% growth in net income after taxes compared to prior year, to CAD 6.3 billion. This is a substantial growth in all measurements in this trying economic time.
Now if RBC is posting this type of growth, why would they want to put some of their employees who have been with them for so many years, dedicated and hardworking resulting in the type of growth that they are enjoying today, on the unemployment line?. If RBC bank is not satisfied with these numbers perhaps they should cut back on the fringe benefits of the CEO's and other top managers and they would certainly improve their profit margin even more.
We consider the RBC bank offer as a slave offer, by indicating that it would be in the best interest of the workers to be laid off to accept it as it is more than what they would receive, should the calculations be done by our labour department; secondly that after three months the interest rate on the mortgage would increase from staff rate to the regular client rate from 4% to 8%; these laid off workers will no longer be part of the pension plan. This offer is inhumane and nobody should accept it.
RBC Bank in our opinion, if they truly considered these employees as a viable part of the operation they would offer them a more tangible settlement that would allow these workers to start fresh, but without any existing financial burdens.
- Double the amount they offered them and negotiate with the Inspectorate of Taxes for this payout to be exempt from taxes. According to information in the media it was done for the AUC Medical School who got away with a substantial amount that was not paid to the Receivers office.
- Write off their mortgages at RBC Bank or pay off the mortgages at any other lending institutions.
- Allow those workers to remain within the pension plan as long as they can continue contributing their share of the premium.
Above and beyond we strongly condemn the laying off of the thirteen workers and any others to follow. We implore all the workers to stick together and be each other keepers. Remember in unity you have strength and if you don't stand up and support your colleagues now in action believing that it will not happen to you, well then you are dead wrong. Today it is them and tomorrow it is you.
We will continue to keep a close eye on this case in the interest of our people and we want you to know that we are in total support of any actions that you deem necessary to prevent the laying off of your colleagues.
OSPP Press Release
