$500M for nurses

THE Government, after months of lobbying by the Nurses Association of Jamaica (NAJ), yesterday agreed to pay the island's registered nurses their outstanding allowances by the end of October.

"I think it will come up to about $525 million, but you have to understand that it has to be divided among everyone. We have 10 levels of nurses and we have about eight special interest groups and regional groups throughout Jamaica, plus, we are looking at over 2,800 nurses," NAJ President Edith Allwood-Anderson told the Observer yesterday.

The agreement was reached during a meeting with the NAJ, the Ministry of Finance and the Public Service, and Labour and Social Security Minister Pearnel Charles, at his North Street office in downtown Kingston.

The agreement for the payments was a relief for scores of public sector nurses, who up to last week staged sick-outs at major hospitals across the island to protest the administration's failure to pay over the monies owed.

Allwood-Anderson, who has been at the forefront of the discussions with the Government, told the Observer yesterday that she was pleased with the agreement reached.

"We had expected an outcome from March, so naturally we are very pleased at this in terms of what has been arrived at for October," she said. "It is long overdue, so we are very happy that the Ministry of Labour assisted us towards this end," added the NAJ president.

The approximately $525 million to be paid next month is only about half of what is owed to the nurses, and Allwood-Anderson said that not all nurses will benefit from yesterday's agreement.

Allwood-Anderson, whose term as president ends next month, is hoping that the Government will not renege on its promise to make the payments.

"We have had several of these (meetings), but there appears to be a commitment on all sides," she told the Observer. "The Government says at the end of October they will try their best in every way to see if they are able to pay the nurses, and we have signed off on that and we agreed to that," she said.

Nurses, Allwood-Anderson said, wanted the payments to be made at the end of this month but were told that it would take some time for the Government to identify the funds.

At the same time, Minister Charles told JIS News that although the Government had agreed to pay the nurses, it should not be interpreted to mean that the Government could afford to meet other expenses.

"Workers in the public sector need to be aware of the position that the country is in, and how it compares with other countries which are experiencing massive redundancies and are drowning in unemployment, or are cutting wages and allowances," the minister said.

"Although we have been spared a lot of the disasters and setbacks which could have occurred, the workers have to give the Government the necessary support it needs to meet the challenges of this critical period," said Charles.

Another meeting has been scheduled for September 22 at the labour ministry to discuss the controversial job reclassification of nurses.

"What we are seeking is clarification and explanation on the 22nd of September, and that will advise the nurses in terms of what do we do and where do we go regarding that issue," Allwood-Anderson said.

— Additional reporting by JIS News

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