PM appeals to foreign employers to treat employees properly

While foreigners are welcomed to the shores of St Vincent and the Grenadines to live and conduct business, Prime Minister Dr Ralph Gonsalves is asking that these foreign employers treat their Vincentian employees properly.

While addressing Parliament last Tuesday, Gonsalves referred to the recent case of a fast food restaurant employee who resorted to violence to try to get money owed to her by her boss.{{more}}

“We have some people, particularly some persons in certain kinds of businesses, like for instance a certain young lady had to assault someone from the Chinese civilization that owns…a restaurant because she wouldn’t pay her,” Gonsalves said.

“We can’t have people not obeying …the labour laws.”

On Tuesday, April 20, Friekesha Douglas was brought before the Serious Offences Court for assaulting her employer Jyfen Chen for failure to pay her after she was fired.

Gonsalves disclosed that since the incident was reported, members of the Labour Department visited the business where Douglas was employed and they plan to make visits to other business to ensure that are operating in keeping with the labour laws.

“I received a report already and there are reports which I can ask for in relation to health and safety in some of these restaurants and I have records and files on the status in the country of certain people,” he added.

“If you are here to do business, we welcome you to do business, but for heaven’s sake, treat the people of St Vincent and the Grenadines properly when they are working.”

On March 31, at the launch of the 2016 Wages Councils, Minister of labour Camillo Gonsalves vowed to pursue investigations and enforce the law on possible breaches of the labour laws.

“The Department of Labour is also working assiduously on standards and legislation to govern issues related to occupational safety and health in the workplace,” he stated.(CM)