Housing Minister Dr Roodal Moonilal told reporters on Friday his ministry has ended its relationship with 27 contractors employed with the Community-Based Environmental Protection and Enhancement Programme (CEPEP).
However Moonilal gave the assurance that more than 1,000 workers employed by the contractors will be reintegrated into the restructured CEPEP program within the next 14 days.
Moonilal said it's about being fair. "There have been contractors who have been in the system for eight years. It is unfair when they are there for so long and they continue, and in some areas we do not have contractors to serve people in those areas."
He added, "That was not the objective of the program. We do not owe a duty to the contractors or the businessman, so to speak. We owe a duty to the workers.
"A contractor who has been on the scene for three years or more would be able by now to stand on their own to secure work in the public or private sector as well."
Moonilal said the program was meant to be a temporary one but noted that some of the contractors have been employed since it started in 2002.
However Moonilal gave the assurance that more than 1,000 workers employed by the contractors will be reintegrated into the restructured CEPEP program within the next 14 days.
Moonilal said it's about being fair. "There have been contractors who have been in the system for eight years. It is unfair when they are there for so long and they continue, and in some areas we do not have contractors to serve people in those areas."
He added, "That was not the objective of the program. We do not owe a duty to the contractors or the businessman, so to speak. We owe a duty to the workers.
"A contractor who has been on the scene for three years or more would be able by now to stand on their own to secure work in the public or private sector as well."
Moonilal said the program was meant to be a temporary one but noted that some of the contractors have been employed since it started in 2002.
He said the intention was to give people an opportunity to build on their business skills so they can "graduate to the private sector and do other types of work."
Moonilal said, "That has not happened that way. We are hoping that the contractors who have graduated, firstly we are hoping they accept their graduation certificates and they would find alternative work and they would be established by now. But the workers must not suffer because of that...
"It is not the intention of the CEPEP or the Ministry that any worker or group of workers go without bread or a dollar and we are working with that principle in mind that workers who would otherwise face a disruption by the transformation and the expansion would be reabsorbed within the program," Moonilal said.
Moonilal said, "That has not happened that way. We are hoping that the contractors who have graduated, firstly we are hoping they accept their graduation certificates and they would find alternative work and they would be established by now. But the workers must not suffer because of that...
"It is not the intention of the CEPEP or the Ministry that any worker or group of workers go without bread or a dollar and we are working with that principle in mind that workers who would otherwise face a disruption by the transformation and the expansion would be reabsorbed within the program," Moonilal said.
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