“NO PAY, NO WORK; TOWN CLERK MUST GO!”
Nov 17, 2017 , https://www.kaieteurnewsonline...-town-clerk-must-go/
– Protesting city workers say tired of broken promises
Scores of City Hall employees yesterday took to the streets in protest against the town clerk Royston King who they say has been breaking promises made to them.
The employees gathered with their placards in front of City Hall demanding that something be done about their constantly delayed salaries.
The workers stated that their monthly pay is never on time and that they are yet to be paid for the month of October.
They also spoke of their back-pay which is also owed to them by their “employers”.
The staffers mentioned they had enough and it was time to let the public know what is going on behind the curtains
They were asked what their employers had to say about the issues and they mentioned that they had received several promises from the town clerk, but these all were broken. “Every time we approach them about out salaries they would provide us with dates, those dates have come and gone and nothing has been done” was the remarks of one of the protesters
Several employees also mentioned that in some instances their National Insurance Scheme (NIS) payments are being deducted from their accounts, but not being paid over to the NIS.
The employees called for immediate action to be taken, since they have their personal responsibilities such as mortgages, electricity bills and other responsibilities to fulfil. One staff member was also seen with her young child complaining that she could no longer take her child to school because she couldn’t afford the school fee, so she was forced to take him to work.
The employees also highlighted the fact that their Union dues were also outstanding, and questioned where their money was going.
Among those protesting were the current staffers and former Deputy Mayor Sherod Duncan, who displayed his displeasure by lying flat on the roadway outside City Hall, as a means of getting over his message that he is willing to “lay down his life for the workers.” There were also several retirees who were yet to receive their benefits since the month of April.
According to Duncan “they (employees) have no confidence in the town clerk, because he has failed them so many times.”
“It seems like it would be a monthly thing” stated one protestor referring to their protest. The employees had held a protest in the month of October relating to the same issues.