KINGSTON, Jamaica — The Bustamante Industrial Trade Union (BITU) and the Union of Clerical Administrative and Supervisory Employees (UCASE) have served claims for bargaining rights on behalf of construction workers employed to the China Harbour Engineering Company (CHEC), which was contracted to carry out road expansion work on the Marcus Garvey Drive and Mandela Highway.

UCASE today disclosed in a release that the unions are concerned about the many accidents/injuries and the frequent occurrences of these accidents on the projects.

The unions said many employees have been severely injured on the two work sites and are requesting a meeting with management to discuss the medical assistance and compensation being provided for the injured workers.

The unions have also asked the Ministry of Labour and Social Security to arrange an early ballot for representation among workers to determine the union claim.

The claim was served by Alden Brown, Senior Vice President of the BITU and Vincent Morrison, President of UCASE.

The company employs over 90 workers on both sites.