Immigration officers threaten to take industrial action
Published:Friday | October 14, 2022 | 12:11 AMKimone Francis/Senior Staff Reporter
The management of the Passport, Immigration and Citizenship Agency (PICA) will have to work to avert three days of industrial action by the country’s immigration officers, who are said to be restive over poor treatment and unpaid special allowances for some employees.
More than 180 immigration officers are employed by PICA.
Gleaner sources at the agency have disclosed that strike action is set to take place across the island in the coming week, when managers and supervisors are expected to be engaged in an out-of-town work retreat between October 26 and October 28.
The matter of special allowance was reportedly brought to the Industrial Dispute Tribunal, which ruled that the benefit was to be afforded to immigration officers, who are represented by the National Workers Union (NWU), The Gleaner was told.
Calls to NWU General Secretary Granville Valentine for comment on Thursday went unanswered.
“Right now, there are some who are not getting it and they (management) are procrastinating and dragging out the thing unnecessarily,” the Gleaner source said.
“So the place going to lock down for it,” the source added.
The workers are also reportedly frustrated by the “general mistreatment” allegedly meted out to them by management, including allegations about the interdiction of colleagues without disciplinary hearings.
At least three immigration officers have reportedly been suspended without hearings.
“But not just that, that there is no respect for this department and a lack of recognition for the effort and the work put in. The temperature is high and it is getting worse,” the source warned.
The Gleaner was also informed that up to Friday, the management and the union were locked in a three-hour online meeting to resolve the issues.
CLAIMS REFUTED
On Wednesday, the agency denied that it had wronged workers and refuted reports of corrupt practices taking place there.
“The Passport, Immigration and Citizenship Agency has been made aware of allegations in the media which present misleading information about the operations of the agency. PICA refutes the unsubstantiated allegations of corruption and affirms that as an entity every effort is made to comply with all laws and ethical standards,” it said in a statement.
“Regarding the issue of interdiction, the agency operates within the remit of the law and policies of the Government of Jamaica and adheres to these procedures when treating with any allegations that are brought to the agency’s attention,” it said.
It said that it met with the NWU on October 3 to discuss the matter of interdiction.
“The discussion was quite amicable,” PICA said.
“The result of that meeting was that the agency had followed the guidelines laid down by the Government of Jamaica. Nevertheless, the union expressed concerns about the process of interdiction and the agency made note of all concerns and recommendations,” the statement said.