UPDATE: Govt is weak & not bargaining for us- LIME workers
More than a dozen workers of LIME BVI were in contact with Virgin Islands News Online yesterday afternoon, September 23, 2013 following yet another meeting with management. They related that “things” have become very tense from the moment word ‘hit the street’ about their grievances to the extent that they are now feeling victimised.
The aggrieved workers likely to be laid off by LIME BVI have expressed concerns that their severance pay is meagre, they are working in a tense environment since they allegedly have not been told how much longer they have with the company and that management has allegedly not given them any assurance that they would be rehired by the company identified to manage its technical operations.
Among those who headed the meeting with workers yesterday were the company’s Managing Director, Mr Sean Auguste; Human Resources Manager BVI, Ms Patrica Blaize- Adams; Head of Business Sales; Mr Ken Guiste and Head of the SSD department, Mr Adrian Roberts.
“Auguste was the one doing all the talking… This is already taking a very serious toll on us all. We are asking to please tell us when we are going and give us some more money,” said one of the frustrated employees.
The workers also said they are very disappointed with Government especially the Ministry responsible since they felt if the Ministry responsible for telecommunications in the Virgin Islands had negotiated with the company their package would have been better. “I still don’t think that it is too late and I think it’s time that this government stands up for its people. Yes our labour law says a minimum of nine days per year and yes they giving us twelve days per year but LIME is a one Caribbean company and they are doing much better than that for other countries that have been performing much, much, much, much less than we are doing and they getting better because their governments, unions and others are bargaining for their people. Where is our government to bargain for us?” asked one employee.
“Mr Auguste is the GM for Turk’s and Caicos Islands too. Their minimum pay according to the labour law is seven, you hear me seven days per year and when you check their performance in terms of reaching annual targets its nothing close to what we have been accomplishing here in the BVI,” another worker alleged.
The disgruntled workers further alleged that for Turks and Caicos Islands the package for employees with 1 – 10 years services is three weeks for consecutive work years, four weeks for 11 – 19 years service, and five weeks for 20 years and over. “For us in the BVI is 12 days per year and we have so many persons who have been with this company from the time we left school and got as much as 25 – 26 years of services and our package is across the board. Negotiation and representation is what is lacking for us but we intend to plea our cause to the end,” another employee argued.
The workers alleged that when the talk had first surfaced about the cutting of the SSD department, workers were admonished about calling their counterparts in the Turks and Caicos Islands.
“We are calling on our people to stand up with us on this one; it’s not just for us, today for me, tomorrow for you. No job in this BVI is safe because this government does not, and I say without any apologies, they do not bargain for their people. The businesses in this territory have the government in their pockets and they render themselves powerless to bargain. This nonsense must stop. Please, it’s time we come together and stand up for each other,” commented a worker and was fully supported by the others.
The workers claimed they understand they have to go, however, the stress brought to bear is uncalled for because if they are given a realistic time as to when they would be severed they would make better decisions.
“These guys are not looking at the long term effects. We are all part of LIME and right now if they send us off on a good note they stand to benefit because we will continue to be advocates for LIME but if they are going to send us off on a disgruntled note what you think would happen?”
See previous article posted September 23, 2013
LIME workers lash out on possible layoff treatment
– Say more than 24 employees to go home with no assurance of being employed with managed services provider
A number of persons likely to be laid off by LIME BVI have expressed concerns that their severance pay is meagre, they are working in a tense environment since they allegedly have not been told how much longer they have with the company and that management has allegedly not given them any assurance that they would be rehired by the company identified to manage its technical operations.
LIME’s Managing Director, Mr Sean Auguste recently stated in a press release that LIME is looking to redefine the way it does business by incorporating a managed services business model that is expected to come into effect later this year.
“The redefined operational model will see LIME becoming more focused on services, products, sales, and while the managed services provider will focus specifically on the infrastructure that keeps telecommunications in the Virgin Islands working well,” Mr Auguste stated in the press release.
The Managing Director also noted that the model will see some members of LIME BVI’s Service Support and Delivery (SSD) team transitioning from the company to the managed services provider at the end of the process and that the employees whose positions would become redundant will have the opportunity to reapply with the managed services provider.
“We have started discussions with all staff in the departments which will be impacted by this change. As a responsible corporate citizen, LIME is keen on maintaining employment levels and as such all of the impacted LIME employees will have the opportunity to reapply for roles with the managed services provider,” Mr Auguste further assured.
However, some six LIME workers to be affected by the pending move have raised their concerns with Virgin Islands News Online following an article on a local online news site, which one of the sources said is far from the "real facts and laced with inaccuracies".
Is Ericsson the company to manage Lime BVI’s Service Support & Delivery Dept?
The source also alleged that the entire SSD department of LIME BVI will be outsourced to a company by the name of Ericsson.
“LIME did tell us that they are likely to keep back one persons to do like quality assurance but everybody else is going home,” the source alleged. “When we asked them about the details about Ericsson their reply or response was that they do not know because they haven’t sat down with Erickson and worked out details of employment… and also stuff like insurance and all those kind of things, we have no idea and they told us that they have no idea,” a worried employee stated to Virgin Islands News Online.
LIME did not give any details of what agreement will be worked out with the affected employees. “At this stage, we cannot issue any further details until any agreement is definite and official. We will make a further public statement at the appropriate time,” the release quoted Mr Auguste as saying.
Meanwhile, the sources alleged that management informed them orally that they would be getting twelve days for each consecutive year of work and that is non-negotiable. They said while the severance payment package is not breaking the labour laws of the Virgin Islands they think LIME has the capacity to do much better for their workers.
“The Labour Code (for the VI) is the minimum nine days so you can say that they are within their rights to do that, however, LIME operates as a one Caribbean way of operation and across the Caribbean they are giving some countries like four weeks, five weeks, some get like six weeks. The BVI is at the bottom with twelve days,” related one of the employees of LIME.
Major layoffs in Jamaica & Barbados due to Ericsson takeover
LIME Jamaica had announced in April that it had finalized a deal for rights to a managed services agreement with Ericsson and that it would be laying off around 300 workers in the island nation, although they would be offered the opportunity to apply for similar roles under the new structure.
The contract between Ericsson and LIME was signed initially for a seven-year period and, according to LIME Jamaica, all let-go employees would have received a separation package, along with career change counseling and financial advice.
And on August 30, 2013 the Barbados Nation reported that some two hundred (200) employees are being let go from LIME Barbados at the end of September following an agreement between LIME and Swedish company Ericsson.
“LIME said it had entered into an exclusive management service agreement “in an effort to restructure its operations”. It comes into effect on October 1, 2013,” the Barbados Nation reported.
LIME BVI employees not satisfied with severance package
Meanwhile, the employees of LIME BVI said feel they are being slighted due to the fact that LIME BVI has been constant with their financial operations. “They (SSD department) have been contributing the most actually, or among the top three to LIME as a whole yet the workers are getting the worse deal in this,” said one of the concerned workers.
This news site understands that the workers to be affected have voiced their opinions about their severance pay package with management. “They have promised to get back to the workers but that’s all they are getting, promises. “ a source alleged.
The discussion with workers about the future of the company allegedly started sometime in August and employees were told that the company needed to reach a certain target within a given period otherwise persons would be sent home. “They let us know quite candidly that we either perform, we either save, we either come up with the money or we go,” the employees alleged.
“There was an article that was carried (news site named), where it said that [Head of Marketing for Marketing and Corporate Communications BVI and TCI, Mr Kareem-Nelson] Hull said that no one is going to be laid off. We were told before that there was a possibility that persons would be going home, I guess that brought some kind of comfort,” the source alleged.
It was also alleged that following the release of the information to the public, staff were called into a meeting. “And we were told that hey, we didn’t expect the information to get into the media so we had to give them a story and the truth of the matter is that the department is being cut,” the same source stated.
Workers are said not to be fighting to keep their jobs but merely concerned about being adequately paid as they deserve. They said that they were told in no uncertain terms by management that they will not be told, at the time of their last meeting, when their services will be terminated. “He, (name given) does not want to tell us …. He did tell us the worst case scenario is December, yet he tell us don’t worry he would give us notice in adequate time,” the source alleged.
Mr Hull, when contacted by this news agency, declined to comment stating that LIME BVI is not prepared to divulge any further information other than what was published in a recent press release from LIME.
Meanwhile, Virgin Islands News Online was told that LIME's management is to meet with the affected workers this morning, September 23, 2013.
LIME is a subsidiary of UK-based Cable & Wireless Communications (CWC), a company with a long history in the Caribbean and Latin America.
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104 Responses to “UPDATE: Govt is weak & not bargaining for us- LIME workers”
We miss conrad maduro at labour to fight for our rights
BVI has been a bread winner for C&W for years so why is their staff been treated the worse.
But the thing is as well ...while business is business there is a way in which to do things. And staff are tired of the the constant abuse from LIME ... they have been bulling staff for years with their own internal politics. Very few staff in BVI or the rest of the Caribbean for that matter happy with LIME. They are just like their service
The labor code is a guide to say that is the minimum.
There ground is that they are getting far less than any other island - including the other country that Mr. Auguste is the BOSS of.
At least they ain't acting GAY!!! You don't know the history and the tricks they play.
one of the NDP politician w**e works at LIME at least that should spur them into to action but NOTING THERE
Where is the LIME big bad public relations guru?
The poor have gotten poorer and our working class citizens bears the ever increasing burden of repaying these loans for ss, cdb and dbvi
And as Virgin Islanders we should be concerned because if these guys aren't employed by Ericcson a job is not going to pop up some place else automatically and they have families to support. People talking about no job secure, I hope when the shoe is on the other foot they talk all that smack. I don't think we should accept that less qualified people, that they can pay less be allowed to replace them because it suits some corporate bottom line and that is what I see gearing up to happen. There is more in the mortar than the pestle. Don't take this lightly ppl.
Try multiplying 25 years x 25 days (or 5 weeks) and see if that makes a difference over 25 years x 12 days.
It is important to get your facts straight concerning the T&C package.
Get LIME and Ericsson on the phone. Their attorneys anyway. Tell them Labour will not issue any new work permits for neither one of them and that their permit to do business in the territory will be curtailed and then do it. Then be sure to do a background analysis on the company to include any agreements and contracts with the government to ensure any violations will be minimal. Then let the negotiations begin.
If the code says a MINIMUM of 9 days then LIME can be a good corporate citizen and pay double those days and start at 18days. It should be a month for every year at the very least.
Ericsson is a multinational, global telecommunications company who had the distinction in 2012 to be the world's largest provider of wireless network equipment. The Caribbean/Latin America is ripe for their pickings. They would negotiate. They are both set to take over the market and be advised Ericsson has a domination plan.
The laws on redundancy and termination is set out in the labour code... This code was put together by the lawyers of this country and approve by the HOA. Can Gov't do anything to LIME when they are operating within the laws of the country? Laws that you people approve by voting in politicians to represent you who have approved these laws on your behalf. When the labour code was put out to public review, did any of you addressed this aspect of it? Ok, so now we say that 9 nor 12 days ain't enough for you all, what are you going to do? Are you going to band together for the people of this nation and have it increased to 21? Don't be selfish and expect the nation to only support you in time of your need, but do something now so your own children and others can benefit from in the future. RALLY for change in the labour code. You can't do anything about what' s happening to you but you can do something for others who will have to face a similar situation in the future. Rally to increase the days to 21 - 25 per year worked. Let me see if you LIME staff will do this!
The United Nations shall promote: a) higher standards of living, full employment, and conditions of economic and social progress and development; b) solutions of international economic, social, health, and related problems; c) international cultural and educational cooperation; d) universal respect for, and observance of, human rights and fundamental freedoms for all without distinction as to race, sex, language, or religion.
Believe it or not, there are some employers riight here in the BVI who have tried to get away with not paying workers their severance and in these situation I can see a fight for rights. Rally around that if you want solidarity and stand for justice. But when a company off the bat giving you more, I say KUDOS. Don't be penny wise and pound foolish. Don't be led by emotions, pick your battles wisely. The government already spoke. They saw it fit in 2010 to change severance from 6 days to 9 days. What sort of presedence will we be setting if companies are being forced to give more than what has been allowed. I am sure that LIME thought about their employees when they decide to give more than what the the Labour Code stipulated. From what I understand the 12 days is from the time they started. Remember their years prior to 2010 will fall under the old Labour Code of 6 days. So if my math is correct, for 20 years @ 12 days from the time they started with the company, they stand to take home at the least a year's salary. Tell me agian what is unjust about that. Again, explain the logic behind this to me, because I live in the BVI not T&C.
See what money does to people? It can build you up and it can break you down. It can even make companies not give a crap about the people who keep the same company going.
C&W knows what they are doing!! This wasn't thought of yesterday ... it was ALL coming from the time they changed the name of their Caribbean business to LIME. I wonder how things in Trinidad -- the only B-mobile country that didn't buy into this scheme.
C&W has an internal team of lawyers and an HR function that ONLY works for the interest of the company and NOT one bit of interest for the staff ... they love countries like BVI that have NO unity it makes it easy for them to go to the Minister and give him a good talk about what they going to do and why ... And the BVIlanders such as Mrs A... get paid very well to be cold and curl to her own people ... they keep HR files a complete miss so staff remain powerless
They don't really have to go to Labor since Labor works perfectly for them.
Everyone knows .. when you go to Labor they show NO interest in your case - they don't even follow up - because they know you can't do nothing without power and we aren't united as a people so we fail every time.