The Communication Worker's Union calls it divide and conquer but for the GOB and Ashcroft controlled BTL Board of Directors it's called giving workers an offer they might not be able to refuse.
Chairman Keith Arnold today sent each employee a bulletin explaining the Sunshine Trust and how it will benefit employees. The bulletin explains that under the rules of the trust, there will be no immediate cash benefit to BTL employees, but once the three loans are repaid in 15 years, that's when the workers will benefit. Until then, all dividends from the shares will accrue to Sunshine and voting rights will be exercised by the Sunshine directors. One of those directors can be a representative of the employees but that person would have to be an accountant or a lawyer.
In his letter to the employees, Chairman Arnold explains that as a trustee, he felt it important to bypass the union executive and what he calls any "rash decision" and offer the Sunshine shares to each employee individually. Arnold's proposal is that those who don't want to participate should write to the trustees; presumable then all those who do not write in, regardless of their position, will be included in the scheme.
We note that this is the first explanation of the Sunshine scheme offered to employees, a scheme that was agreed to by government on Monday September 19, three days before the Prime Minister approached the workers' representatives who are supposed to be the primary beneficiaries of the scheme.
As we had reported, under the scheme, all earnings and benefits and rights associated with the 20% shareholding in BTL will accrue to, rest with and be controlled by Sunshine Holdings Limited. That will remain so until 2020 when the loans are repaired.
