Labour Ministry investigating Qualfon fiasco

May 22, 2014 News

An East Coast Demerara-based call centre has blamed a power outage on the reason for Tuesday’s incident which sent 18 staffers to the hospital.
Describing the incident as an “unfortunate series of events”, Qualfon in a statement last evening said that around 14:00hrs Tuesday, its Georgetown II office, located at Lot 2 Goedverwagting, East Coast Demerara, lost electrical power due to a faulty breaker.
“Using a backup battery system, normal operations continued while technicians worked on fixing the problem. Due to the power drain on the battery, the air conditioning units stopped operating.
“Soon after, the management team ceased normal business operations and invited all employees to step outside for fresh air while the team continued to troubleshoot the power outage.”
Qualfon, said that approximately 250 employees exited the building through the front door and did not require the use of the other three emergency exits.
“During this time, several employees fell ill. Qualfon immediately transported employees to the hospital. A total of 18 employees received medical attention. Additionally, Qualfon sent both its staff nurse and the chaplain on staff to the hospital to provide additional support for employees.” The Mexican-owned call centre, insisted that after investigation, it was determined that during the power outage, employees were not exposed to harmful conditions inside the building. “Management received reports stating that all employees who were treated have been released from the hospital and will be returning to work soon.”
Two hours after the incident, workers came on for the next shift and the early-shift employees were dismissed. “About 200 employees arrived at the building and were informed of the situation. They remained outside the building. Employees were allowed to leave, but most stayed in the event that they could go to work.”
At about 20:00hrs, Qualfon said that the electrical and A/C service was restored.
“At 8:30 p.m., Qualfon managers determined the building was safe and comfortable to resume normal business operations, and the 200 employees were invited into the office. Business resumed as usual and without incident.”
In response to the events on Tuesday, Qualfon said it is working to perform a complete evaluation of its electrical systems.
“This is an unfortunate series of events, and we feel terrible for those who got sick after the power outage. We assure our employees and the community at large that our offices are a safe working environment, and we will continue to ensure that the health and safety of our employees remains our first priority,” said Sherwin Welcome, Site Director, Qualfon Georgetown II.
Yesterday, the Ministry of Labour said it will be investigating the circumstances and condition which resulted in the employees ending up at the hospital.
It was reported that about 600 workers comprise a shift.

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Labour Ministry investigating Qualfon fiasco

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