WAWU Secretary-Treasurer Kertiste Augustus & DEF Executive Director Achille Joseph clash on redundancy

​Waterfront and Allied Workers Union (WAWU) Secretary-Treasurer Kertiste Augustus and Dominica Employers’ Federation (DEF) Executive Director Achille Chris Joseph, clash on the interpretation of Dominica’s redundancy law, and employers responsibilities and actions under the law, in the aftermath of hurricane Maria.
 
Augustus accused some employers of exploiting the redundancy law, in his May Day rally message. He said, “The provisions of the law have been set aside in one case, for whereas the law provides for six weeks layoff, that employer has issued six months’ notice of lay-off to his staff”.
 
Joseph has a completely different view on that matter and challenged Augustus to make that law available to Dominica’s employers, as he does not know of the existence of such a law.
 
Augustus for his part expressed surprise that Joseph is “alarmed by WAWU branding employers as exploiters”, and that Joseph challenged him to provide the law that speaks to the matter of six weeks layoff, and the ability of the employees to claim redundancy after 6 weeks.
 
Augustus referenced Section 24 of the Protection of Employment Act which states that employees who have been laid off in excess of six weeks can in fact claim redundancy, and once they do that, the employer is duty-bound to one of two things. He explained that employers must pay the redundancy claim or alternatively, within a period of four weeks, offer employment to that employee, to last for 13 consecutive weeks.
 
Augustus added, “If he does that and the employees still insists in being paid redundancy, the employer may not comply with the redundancy payment. I would expect Chris Joseph to be aware with the provision of the Act.”