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St Patrice Ennis
Following strike action by employees of Caymanas Track Limited (CTL) yesterday, a back to work formula was arrived at last night after a lengthy meeting involving representatives of the Union of Technical, Administrative and Supervisory Personnel (UTASP), CTL and officials of the Ministry of Labour and the Ministry of Finance at the Labour Ministry, North Street.
Although details from last night's meeting were sketchy, it is understood that a follow-up meeting between the parties would be held with Finance Minister Audley Shaw this morning at the Finance Ministry, Heroes Circle, to reach a compromise.
Employees of Caymanas will resume this morning to prepare the track for today's scheduled race meet and also tomorrow's big Superstakes meet comprising 10 races.
The back-to-back Super Weekend race meets were in doubt as a result of the industrial action over what they described as issues affecting their welfare.
The workers are represented by UTASP whose general secretary, St Patrice Ennis, justified the workers action at the aforementioned meeting with CTL's director of corporate service/human resource manager, Andrea Jarrett, and representatives of the Ministry of Labour and Ministry of Finance to try and resolve the issue. Reacting to the strike, CTL's newly appointed chairman Raphael Gordon, amid calls for his resignation by Ennis and the trainers' associations, yesterday said the board has identified the cash flow problems and is working with the Ministry of Finance to address them.
Contrary to reports in sections of the media yesterday that he has resigned as chairman, Gordon described the claims as "absolutely false".
Calls by Ennis and the trainers' associations for a forensic audit of CTL were also dismissed by Gordon.
"Are they willing to pay for that? We send quarterly reports to the Ministry of Finance and I can tell you that the company's accounts are in order up to June 30, 2011.
"All financial statements are up to date and these were audited by Price Waterhouse Coopers," disclosed Gordon, who conceded that the company has been losing money since June last year when legislation to extend the bookmakers opening hours from 8 a.m. to 11 p.m. was enacted.
"It has been a struggle to make ends meet as we are still awaiting the recommendations of the mediation report reincreased rights fee to be implemented in order to ease the cash flow problems of the company," said Gordon, who described the current industrial action by workers as 'politically motivated'.
According to Ennis, CTL is experiencing "serious cash flow problems" and the workers, many of whom picketed the main gate leading into Caymanas Park yesterday, are concerned about their jobs.
"We have lost confidence in the management and the board in terms of their ability to run the company ... We are calling on them to resign," declared Ennis. "Through their stewardship the company's resources have been depleted, in particular the reserve fund of $280 million. Of that amount, only $3 million is left," he charged.
"In light of this, workers wages have been late, payments of purses to trainers and other racing personnel have also been late, as well as outstanding payments to contractors and suppliers ... We are demanding a forensic audit of CTL's accounts," he added.
On Wednesday, both trainers' associations convened a meeting in the trainers' room to bash the management of CTL over their stewardship of the company, putting forward a number of proposals to turn around the cash-strapped company, including the call for a forensic audit.
At the quarterly meeting between CTL and the stakeholders at Caymanas Park yesterday, the stakeholders voiced their concerns and sought the intervention of Finance Minister Audley Shaw.
