Dear Claudienne,

I have written to you before and my issue was satisfactorily dealt with. My situation at this time has forced me to appeal to you once more. I am a dental nurse in Hanover, and I have worked with the Ministry of Health (MOH) for 40 plus years. When I applied for my third seniority with “lump sum” in 2019, I was informed that although I had been appointed as a Grade II dental nurse from 2001; there have been no Grade II posts in Hanover, Westmoreland or Trelawny.

The anomaly that had resulted in me being paid as a Grade II dental nurse could not be explained. Now that I am about to retire, I am being told that this situation will affect my pension.

I went on pre-retirement leave in November 2020, and it ended on March 28, 2021. I have been trying to make contact with the MOH for over one year with no success. I am not prepared to wait forever for my pension. If it is still with the MOH when will it reach the Ministry of Finance. The MOH must immediately get legal advice on this situation.

MD

Dear MD,

The Tell Claudienne column sought clarification from the permanent secretary of the Ministry of Health in regard to your reclassification concerns and was informed that the matter had been sent to the Pensions Unit of the MOH and to the Western Regional Health Authority WRHA.

The Pensions Unit told the column that they were awaiting information from the WRHA to determine how to address your problem.

The Pensions Unit explained that the WRHA was an autonomous agency, and was responsible for drafting and sending to the MOH the document that explained the history of the classification errors that had resulted in the anomalies in your salary.

Tell Claudienne contacted the office of the director of the WRHA and also its Human Resources Department to find out when the Pensions Unit of the MOH would receive the document.

On December 7, 2022, a director of the MOH Pensions Unit told the column that the WRHA had sent the document to them. He said that your file was being processed and would shortly be sent to the Pensions Unit of the Ministry of Finance for your pension to be computed and sent to the Accountant General’s Department for payment.

We wish you all the best.

Have a problem with a store, utility, a company? Telephone 876-936-9436 or Cell # 876-484-1349 or write to:Tell Claudienne c/o Sunday Finance, Jamaica Observer, 40-421/2 Beechwood Avenue, Kingston 5; or e-mail:edwardsc@jamaicaobserver.com. Please include a contact phone number.