Charles: No need to panic over gratuities

KINNESHA GEORGE-HARRY

THA Chief Secretary Kelvin Charles has promised not to deny any worker his/her benefits after a Facebook post claiming THA contract employees cannot claim gratuity after four years went viral.

Weighing in on the matter, Minority Councillor Dr Faith BYisrael said from looking at the law, there really is a statute of limitations when it comes to the person who is owed the money pursuing the former employer.

“Whether that is the case or not, we are hoping that the government of TT and... in particular, the Tobago House of Assembly, does not use this particular piece of law to further enslave the people of Tobago who have been owed gratuity for the longest time,” she said.

BYisrael was addressing reporters last Tuesday at the bi-weekly news conference of the Minority Council at the Minority Leader’s office in Scarborough.

She said her party was hoping the THA "would be kind, loving and caring and treat the workers of Tobago with respect, treat the workers of Tobago with love, treat the workers of Tobago with their due justice.

"They worked, they expect to be paid the gratuity and we are asking you to not use this piece of information as a reason to continue to enslave the workers of Tobago.”

She called on the THA to pay the outstanding gratuity.

“If there are questions about where this money should come from, we know that every year, at the end of every fiscal year, there is unspent balances that are left in the consolidated fund that we can use to pay off these outstanding balances.

“We are therefore asking the members of the THA to please, please do not continue down this path of having people beg for what they have already worked for. They shouldn’t have to work twice for the same salary.”

In a press release on Thursday, Charles said: “It is not the intention of the THA to deny any worker his/her benefits. That is simply not true, and I reject all attempts by anyone to mislead the public on this matter. Such attempts are clearly geared at creating panic and anxiety in the public domain.”

At the THA’s post-budget retreat press conference at Mt Irvine Bay Hotel on October 23, Charles said contract workers will be paid gratuity payments in this fiscal year (2019-2020).

He reported that the THA has now been allocated a separate line item for gratuity, as outlined in the budget by Minister of Finance Colm Imbert, adding that the process will entail the auditing of individual gratuity cases by the THA’s audit department. He also pointed out that people have a personal responsibility to liaise with the Inland Revenue department.

Charles said the THA is committed to ensuring THA workers are paid their outstanding gratuities. He said some had already been paid, and outstanding gratuity payments are being processed.