Employees of the Castries City Council (CCC) have been duly notified that they will be receiving outstanding compensation due to them, for works undertaken over the past four years.
It has been reported that Housing and Local Government Minister Richard Frederick is moving with alacrity to ensure that the CCC employees receive their just rewards for their work.
Speaking to reporters, on Monday, Frederick disclosed that the workers will be provided with their long overdue back pay. He acknowledged the tireless work undertaken by the employees for keeping the city streets and its environs clean and tidy, daily.
“Since I assumed this portfolio we have rectified and regularized a number of issues …and for the first time in a very long time , they got paid on time and they are now equipped with protective gear. And for the first time in the history of the CCC, those workers are all covered now by medical insurance,” declared the local government minister.
He added, “we have gone a step further” to stop the practise of deducting payments from the workers to pay creditors, whom it is reported we never paid the monies owed.
In an effort to better the working conditions for the workers, the minister said, the monies owed to the CCC employees will be paid forthwith.
“Apart from all of that, they complained that for the last four years they had not been given back pay and there was an accrual of four years back pay outstanding for the city council workers,” said Frederick.
Moving along, he says, “this week, all city council workers entitled to back pay will receive half of their back pay. They will get their back pay for two years and I have instructed the Mayor that this year will not end, where city council will end on a credit note.
With respect to the workers, Frederick declared, come this Christmas season “city council workers will get the other half of their back pay.”
He asserted: “Whatever we can do, to bring about a greater degree of comfort to them, we will do.”
The CCC has undergone its fair share of financial challenges over the years. But according to Fredrick this may be a thing of the past, with government planning to inject at least $500,000 into the operations at the ‘cash strapped’ CCC.