ANOTHER dispute over a dismissed employee is threatening relations between the National Workers Union and St Jude Hospital.
“The current dispute between St. Jude Hospital and the NWU is one of several issues that the hospital has attempted to address with the NWU over the past several months,” The hospital explained on Thursday.
Last June the dismissal of a hospital worker drew the intervention of the Labour Commissioner, which caused the NWU to temporarily shelve its threat of industrial action. Now another dismissed worker has raised the ire of the NWU.
All the NWU was willing to say about this new dispute was that the current industrial agreement it has with St. Jude Hospital makes provisions for handling disciplinary matters.
“The absence of due process and the failure of the hospital management to adhere to one’s right to natural justice, are infringements of the industrial protocol agreed to between the hospital and the NWU,” a statement from the NWU noted.
The union has termed the hospital’s decision to dismiss the worker as “unjustified termination of unemployment” and has submitted a 30 day notice of protest action on behalf of workers employed with the hospital.
The hospital, however has lashed back stating that while it regrets the notice of intended industrial action by the NWU, deeply values its employees, and is committed to adhering to the laws of natural justice with regard to disciplinary matters, it does not believe that it should be held hostage every time an industrial matter arises.
“The Labour Code provides clearly defined processes for dealing with industrial disputes. The hospital is prepared to utilize all available channels in its efforts to resolve any and all union issues. St Jude Hospital does not believe that a public hospital that serves 42 percent of the Saint Lucian population should be held hostage on every occasion that an industrial relations matter arises,” it stated Thursday.
The hospital is seeking the assistance of the Ministry of Labour in this new dispute and other outstanding industrial relations issues, saying that it is prepared to continue along this line, working in concert with the NWU and the Ministry of Labour.
Meanwhile one of the outstanding matters between the hospital and the NWU which forced the hospital staff to issue an ultimatum to management last year had to do with a call for the removal of the Human Resource Manager from the post.
Ninety staff members signed a petition calling on the hospital management to remove the Manager . They said they were dissatisfied with the treatment meted out to them by the Manager.
All this seems to have fallen on deaf ears because the Human Resource Manager is still at her post.