Untimely payment of CIIP workers irks Region 10 Chairman

Jun 10, 2020 News

Regional Chairman of the Regional Democratic Council (RDC) Region 10, Renis Morian, has issued a stern warning to the Permanent Secretary (PS) within the Ministry of Communities, Emile McGarrel, over his failure to pay workers on time.

Region 10 Chairman, Renis Morian

PS Ministry of Communities, Emile McGarrel

During a recent Regional Health and Emergency Committee (RHEC) meeting, Morian highlighted the Ministry’s callous treatment of the Community Infrastructure Improvement Programme (CIIP) workers.
According to a statement from the Region, Morian told the meeting that the workers have been under paid for some time now.
He stressed the act has resulted in increased economic hardships for several workers, some of whom are single mothers.
“Several of these workers are single parents who depend on this money to take care of themselves and family, but what is heart rending is that they are forced to wait in many cases until three weeks [late] for their salaries,” he said. Morian said that the complaints from the workers have increased since the start of COVID-19.
The Regional Chairman therefore called on the PS to pay the workers on time considering the current pandemic. According to the release, Morian said the CIIP workers should not wait longer than seven days for their monies.
He noted that his intervention has averted protest action by the workers.
Morian further warned that failure by the PS to take remedial actions will result in the CIIP workers of Region 10 taking to the streets.
“Let me make this very clear to PS McGarrel that the CIIP workers in this region are not prepared to wait no more than seven days because if they continue to receive their monthly salary late then there will be protests… I am appealing to him to allow common sense to prevail,” he stressed.
The Regional Chairman said too that taking into consideration the Government constraints in these difficult times, the Ministry of Communities needs to be mindful that there will continue to be increased challenges.
He said that a meager $25,000 a month is way limited but at least efforts should be made to pay these workers on time.
“I want the PS to understand that this as it is, is a bread and butter issue and some compassion should be extended to those who are experiencing challenges.”
Meanwhile, Regional Executive Officer (REO), Orrin Gordon, reiterated the views that the workers should be paid earlier, stating that paying them earlier would help them cushion some of the economic challenges that they are experiencing.