17 June 2014
Dear Chief Minister Hughes,
We have taken this medium to ensure that you receive this appeal and to exhibit transparency to our members. We sent the appended letter to you by email and hand delivery. We have not seen or heard anything, thus we fear it has not reached you.
We have made great strides registering upwards of 250 members while formulating many strategies and training programs to ensure that our Union grows from strength to strength. All these efforts still seem mediocre as the amount of persons registering does not reflect otherwise.
In speaking to potential members as to why they are reluctant to join, many of them respond with similar words, ”De gowerment ain guh like da en dem ain guh support it.” This made us to realize that Anguillians do not generally know how a trade union works or even how it is started. Majority unfortunately believes that it is the duty of Government to set up a Union for the people. We had the General Secretary of the Caribbean Congress of Labour, Sen. Humphrey Charles of Grenada, to explain to our people of their role in the formation of the Union. Unfortunately his words fell on deaf ears.
From an Anthropological perspective we started to look at our history to understand how we can appeal to our people to educate themselves about the importance of the Union. Chief, we all know that Anguilla is not like the other Caribbean islands, where the people had to fight those in authourity for the establishment of Unions as in Barbados and Trinidad. In fact We believe that good fate has made it that at this time in Anguilla’s History we have the opportunity to show the Caribbean and the World that we are not a violent people, but rather a reasoning, intellectual and transparent nation. In 1825 the British Colonists decided Anguilla to be administered by St. Kitts, and in so doing lost their right to self rule. The Vestry was returned to Anguilla in 1827 and we resumed conducting our own affairs. In 1834 slavery was abolished and the majority of the colonists left Anguilla leaving an island of freed slaves. The Vestry was comprised of these Colonists and with them absent, Anguilla remained fragmented from 1834 to 1967 with no symbol of unity.
1967 is also marked with disunity as it is often explained that the revolution was by those in the East, while those in the west were looking at more internal concerns than external. It is apparent that we had two arguing sides of the revolution, those who wanted to fight, and those who wanted to consolidate our position or rather empower the entire Island rather than a few. We are no more fighting, however we yearn for empowerment.
We humbly appeal to you to encourage our people to join the union, so that whichever government comes to power in the next election will engage the Unions and conduct tripartite negotiations with the investors that come to our Island. By empowering our people it is the only way for success of Anguilla.
In closing we would like to paint a picture of the situation. Anguillians are looking towards you to implement the new Labour Code before Elections and simultaneously use the last few months of your term to educate our people as you have been doing for all these years.
We are trying to explain to them that for example in the case of the closing of Malliouhana, a Union would have been able to represent the staff, while the company represented itself. In that way both parties would have been able to come before government to ensure that the staff wishes are heard and effort made to have them realized. It is just wrong and unjust on the part of Anguillians to sit down and believe that our leaders are psychic to know what our concerns are. The most efficient way for workers to have their concerns aired is by coming together in a Union and having one loud voice. If any employer threatens to close business because of this labour code, we humbly ask you to remember 1834. Slavery was abolished in Anguilla and the already poor colonists refused to free our ancestors for 4 more years. Please, Please, Please, do not let history repeat itself. We are hoping that with the new Malliouhana that history does not repeat itself, that that particular hotel opens in a land where the people have a Union and the Hotel itself is eager to engage it. Many people believe that our labour issues started at Malliouhana, but the future has the chance to say that Malliouhana is proof that as Anguillians, Through Unity, we are Empowered & Our Value Discovered.
Respectfully Yours,
Yusuf Abdul Ali
President
Anguilla Hotel and Allied Workers Union
P.O. Box 1121, #19 CCB Complex
The Valley, Anguilla
British West Indies
C: (264) 583 5985 C:(264) 476 2115
axaunion.com
https://www.facebook.com/AnguillaHotelAndAlliedWorkersUnion
(Published without editing by The Anguillian newspaper.)
