LOOP CARIBBEAN: Any efforts by LIAT shareholder governments to make “compassionate” payments of severance to former employees of the cash strapped airline is welcomed by the Antigua and Barbuda government.
Information Minister Melford Nicholas said it was “good news” that St Vincent and the Grenadines Prime Minister Dr Ralph Gonsalves express interest in taking on the burden of paying some form of compensation to the former LIAT employees, given that they had no legal obligation to do so.
“The expectation that Antigua alone would be able to carry the load of the compassionate severance offered to the workers…It is certainly welcomed good news that St Vincent has now begun to echo some of those sentiments that they have a moral obligation to participate in finding compassionate severance,” he said.
On Tuesday, Gonsalves, said he had asked Antiguan Prime Minister Gaston Browne to approach LIAT’s court appointed administrator, Cleveland Seaforth, to determine how much money is owed to the airline’s staff in St Vincent and the Grenadines for his government “to see what we could do”.
LIAT owes its staff members over EC$100 million.
Gonsalves said LIAT has a “moral responsibility” to pay their former staff and customers the money they are owed.
Nicholas is hoping Barbados would follow St Vincent’s example and develop its own form of compassionate severance package.
For its part, Antigua and Barbuda has offered to make a 50 per cent compassionate payment to the LIAT staff in the form of cash and land along with the chance to study at the University of the West Indies, Five Islands Campus.
Additionally, 139 former employees were rehired to work with LIAT as it operates now on a reduced schedule.
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“139 former employees were rehired to work with LIAT” is incorrect. It is a big mess going on up there. they firing who ever they want without the possibility of severance. Then, they severing their friends, to guarantee they get the severance pay whenever, however it may come and rehire those same friends back.
And there is the rest of the staff they refuse to severe, holding severance as a choke hold around their necks. LIAT employees calls on management to severe everyone, and to rehire on the basis of knowledge and abilities and not who likes who.
BTW the current, rotten management team needs to go and should have no part in the process.
Lol, you guys always amaze me with your allegations. Can you prove anything you’re saying here? It’s an Antiguan thing. Making up stories is a winning asset for many…Oh boyyy.
A new airline with the OLE Fowl “Fake American Accent” at the helm of the directorship and the poorly trained Director pilot, good pilot btw, go fly plane, who barely completed high school, at the helm of the company? Then there is a Trini flight attendant turned executive, kicked out of executive, fighting to get back in…I mean. These people brought the airline to its knees, have kept their knees on LIAT’s neck yet they are at the helm of the company?
Not one of the executives there understand finance, non understand operations, hr is in shambles and an Administrator from guyana watching the money…wow. I say get rid of them all. There are enough young intelligent bright Caribbean people to run LIAT.
I am sure there are super qualified staff at LIAT being held down. GB and his team may need to look for those gems within the company.
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