A strike by soil technicians at the Westbury Cemetery yesterday morning forced a family to fill the grave of a deceased relative, using shovels and hoes.
At around 11 a.m. the family of Esme Neblett found that the workers were off the job because of a dispute with the superintendent.
The technicians were in a meeting with the acting general secretary of the National Union Public Workers, Rosalyn Smith.
The problem arose when the shop steward went to the superintendent to discuss a matter and was told that he had to give 24 hours’ notice before the discussion could take place,” the union said.
“You got a problem that needs to be dealt with immediately and you basically brushing off your workers,” said Smith.
“The workers are concerned about a number of other issues pertaining to the allocation of graves.”
Smith said the strike did not last the whole day because acting manager of the Sanitation Service Authority (SSA), Janice Jones, who attended the meeting, was able to resolve some of the short-term matters, such as one relating to oustanding payments for soil technicians.
She disclosed that a meeting was scheduled for next Thursday among SSA representatives, the soil technicians and the union. (AH)
