Romeo Ravenberg, chairman of the General Union for Regional Development Staff (ABPRO), told Suriname Herald that union members are on the verge of taking action. The reason for this is the attitude of the Minister of Regional Development and Sport (ROS), Gracia Emanuël, towards the union. This has caused dissatisfaction among members, who now intend to stop working, according to the union leader.
According to Ravenberg, several issues affecting employees remain unresolved. The minister makes promises and commitments but fails to follow through. She has reportedly stopped responding to the union’s letters and phone calls, and there have been no callbacks. “She stated that if we don’t work, she won’t work either. Communication has been unilaterally cut off by the ministry,” said Ravenberg.
The grievances include issues such as promotions, permanent appointments, and bonuses. The union’s submitted proposal includes requests for the permanent appointments of civil servants who have already collected and submitted medical examination forms—sometimes more than once—yet still haven’t been appointed. “We’ve also heard that permanent appointments are being distributed through party offices of a specific political party in Nickerie. People are being called to collect their promotion decrees there. This has gone too far,” the union leader declared.
Full work stoppage ahead
The union plans to conclude consultations this week and will notify field offices, district commissioners, and various services in the districts. “It will be a full work stoppage. Last week, we sent a letter to the minister stating that we’ve had enough due to the lack of communication between us,” Ravenberg explained.
He emphasized that the union has no choice but to cease work. “If there’s no resolution within two weeks, we’ll be forced to take this step. One week has already passed,” Ravenberg warned.
Previous actions and broken promises
The union leader highlighted that the union had previously taken action for four months. During that time, there was still communication, but no solutions were provided. Members saw no reason to suspend the actions. “Ultimately, we convinced members to stop the actions and give the minister the space to do her job. She claimed she couldn’t work while we were protesting. Unfortunately, this yielded no results. This time, we won’t return to work until we see satisfactory outcomes and our demands are met,” Ravenberg stressed.
