BASSETERRE, St.Kitts (Friday 13th August 2021)-An employee who had been working at a particular company for twenty-five (25) years and was recently fired on grounds of a vaccination policy has been interviewed by this media house.
This reporter discovered the identity of the woman whose name was purposely omitted by her although the letter was publicised. Similarly for the interview conducted on Thursday 12th August 2021, she chose to remain anonymous for the time being.She finds it unfair having been fired over a vaccination policy and also the pressure that comes with such at workplaces.
“It is with great disappointment that I write this letter. We have had to come to the difficult decision to terminate your employment with us due to our vaccination policy with Employees who have direct contact with cruise ship passengers,” a part of the letter dated 23rd July read from a director at RAM’S TRADING LTD. addressed to her.
The letter which began circulating during the week of 5th August has been widely debated by members of the public.
It was also stated in the letter that: “Your choice not to protect yourself or others around you gives us no choice but to terminate your employment with us. We have a public responsibility to protect our Employees and Customers. Furthermore, as you will not be able to work on cruise ship days, (Port requirement and CMO stipulations), this gives us very little opportunity to have you at the workplace and offer fulltime employment. In addition to your limited days, you will have to be tested every two weeks at your cost, which will be an economical strain considering your limited capacity to earn. With these factors in mind, we have decided to conclude your employment at Ram’s Smoke ‘N’ Booze Duty Free.”
As understood, the reason why the terminated worker chose not to include her name in the social media-shared letter was because she just did not want her identity to be circulated.
However, when asked why she shared it publicly, she had this to say: “My decision behind that was we went to Labour Department and there is no justice in there, and we consulted with a lawyer and he is saying forget it because there is no justice in there either so I just figure I would put it out and let the court of public opinion judge the matter.”
According to her, she is satisfied with the feedback and support that she has been getting from members of the public. “Yes, I am satisfied with that. I’m glad that I put it out because I get to meet a lot of other people who are also in the same boat as I am. We will see what we can do going forward from there,” she stated.As gathered, this mother has four dependents.“It’s affecting me in a way that I’m not working anymore, and I can’t provide the way I normally would for my family working all these years.”
The letter asked that she find enclosed “your payment in lieu of notice and holiday pay owed.”In speaking with this media house, the woman highlighted that she intends on fighting for justice in getting what is due to her having worked so many years, and in offering words of encouragement to others in a similar situation , she said: “I would say to others [workers in general], let’s come together, unify and deal with this matter head on.”