BAMC Workers to be Rehired by Co-operative-Owned Firms, Minister Announces Increase in Wages

In an interview with Barbados TODAY, the president of the BCCULL, Kemar Cumberbatch, made clear that the league was not the driving force behind Co-op Energy’s takeover of the BAMC operations but was pleased to support any initiative that would enfranchise its members and affiliates.

Although he said that he could not speak to what Co-op Energy has done since the ABC and BESC came into force and what it intends to do during the transition or any impasse, he said he endorsed the employee ownership model.

“This move will enfranchise the cooperative’s members and we are happy to support any initiative that will support our membership and will enfranchise the average Barbadian,” Cumberbatch said.

“This is a good initiative because it would enfranchise ordinary Barbadians who would have a say in what is being done nationally in a major way. And the way in which [the takeover] is being done is that they are looking to transition from just producing sugar to more renewable energy.

“The government has set a target of achieving 100 per cent renewable energy and carbon neutrality by 2023. Therefore, if the average Barbadian has a stake in this and we are transforming this part of the economy from sugar to a more green energy sector, that is a positive thing and it has the potential to be revenue generating for them. It will benefit all of our members,” he added.

As it relates to the entire co-operative movement, individual credit unions must decide whether or not the prospects were attractive enough for them to invest in the sugar industry’s transformation into a renewable energy-driven sector, Cumberbatch pointed out.

During his statement, Weir also sought to clear the air on the severance process following several complaints by former sugar workers who reported in the media that they did not receive any money since the BAMC cut ties with them, which resulted in them not being able to buy food or gifts for Christmas.

Weir explained that the workers are to receive their severance pay from the National Insurance and Social Security Service (NISSS) and notice pay and vacation pay were sent off from the BAMC to the financial institutions through which workers are paid, before Christmas.

“We have no control over the fact that credit unions made those payments later than commercial banks but the BAMC was responsible in making sure that those workers received their payments before Christmas,” the agriculture minister insisted.

“We cannot control how soon a credit union can upload payments. We did give the workers notice – we had to do so in order for them to meet the timelines of national insurance and that was done.

“I want to make it abundantly clear to all Barbadians that severance pay is different from payments in lieu of notice and holiday pay . . . . This is a case where you have people who have been working in an industry for many decades who have not benefited from the returns of the industry. What we have done for these workers is to make sure, first of all, that they receive their pay for a holiday as they normally do in December – payment in lieu of notice – because they transition into a new company and, equally, have also triggered the process for them to be able to get their severance through the NISSS. For anybody to come and mislead the public and seek to make the public believe that these people couldn’t buy ham and those types of things is extremely disingenuous.”

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