Earlier on we showed you the security officers at Fort Point Security demanding their full pay. Well early this evening and after a long and arduous meeting between representatives from the Labour Department, the employees not only agreed to return to work but that all attempts will be made to ensure that they do receive their full pay. Following the meeting the employees were briefed by the company’s temporary Assistant Manager Carmen Zetina, the acting Deputy Labour Commissioner Hertha Gentle and the President of the Public Service Union and a delegate of the National Trade Union Congress Jacklyn Willougby who had come out in support of the security officers.
Hertha Gentle,
“From the understanding that we get is that the company was paying the workers for 15 days per month, they were getting paid at the 15th and the ending of the month. The organization is claiming that people were being paid in advance for work done so then you would have people taking their salary at the 15th of the month but missing work. So let’s say they cut off the pay day then put the pay in the bank, they pay you in advance for maybe three days and then people don’t come to work and that type of thing. So what they did is decide to close the payroll at the tenth of the month. Therefore when you get pay on the 15th you’re getting paid for 10 days and then it is not working and that’s the reason for the controversy. So what we are trying to do, they are saying it is because of the processes with the bank where checks need to clear and that sort of thing. So we’re trying to work with them to see what can be done along with the banks to see how the payday could maybe be including the full 15 days and maybe getting it the day after or something like that. So right now we can’t make that call until we double check the information that we got. So for today now, everybody is returning to work and Labor will continue to work with them to see how we could regularize everything.”
Jacqueline Godwin,
But how assure can these security officers be that they will receive their full payment?
Hertha Gentle,
“Well let me say that they could rest assure that they will get it because we will make sure that we do all we can within the scope of the law. The law is clear, you work and you have to get paid. It even prescribes how you are to be paid so following that we are going to make sure it happens and management seems very open to getting the situation resolved.”
Jackie Willoughby,
“We are looking for three major things. The first one is nobody is terminated because they stood up for their rights, second thing is that those who have been short paid with their salary will get it in full and it will be regularized. The third thing is the shift. The shift continuously changes and so we are saying now to putt he shift back to normal. Those are the three things that we are looking for and we will be happy working people.”
