Deal or no deal - Public-sector teachers to decide on Government’s adjusted wage offer The government has made an improved offer on key components of the 28-point claim from the Jamaica Teachers’ Association (JTA), which will be placed before delegates for a decision early this week. Mark Malabver, president of the JTA, told The Gleaner that the government has responded to what he termed “some deal breakers”, and the delegates will decide on them at the association’s 62nd annual conference, which begins in Kingston today.
Tufton calls for law changes to tackle hospital ‘social cases’ Jamaica will have to change its laws and policies to address the perennial problem of patients remaining in public hospitals long after they are medically discharged, Health and Wellness Minister Dr Christopher Tufton has warned. Tufton, who has raised concerns about the number of social cases at hospitals across the island on numerous occasions in recent years, reiterated yesterday that the situation is consuming scarce beds and resources needed by acutely ill patients.
75 years later, the scars of Hurricane Charlie remain The Gleaner headline of Friday, August 17, 1951, was ominous: “Hurricane may hit Jamaica today: Bad weather from noon, Crisis in evening.” It was not a sensational prediction. By the time it was over, more than 150 people had died, many thousands were left homeless, including an estimated 9,000 in the Corporate Area alone, and the trail of destruction included catastrophic infrastructure and business losses that dealt a severe blow to the economy.
Medical technologists sue Gov’t over unpaid wages Five medical technologists have sued the Government over an alleged breach of contract and unpaid wages. The claimants – Nika Palmer, Damois Barnett, Rachael Adenigbagbe, Naidia Rachel James and Karon McDonald – were employed by the Ministry of Health and Wellness and resigned at varying periods between October 2022 and November 2023. The five technologists claim that the ministry repeatedly broke promises to pay the outstanding money, leaving them to cover escalating legal fees and other personal expenses out of pocket.
Jamaicans in Florida seek primary election wins in US When voters in Florida go to the polls tomorrow to vote in the Democratic Party primary elections, a number of candidates with Jamaican roots are hoping they will come out victorious and go on to the general election on November 3. Among those hoping voters will give them a win are Jamaica-born Dale Holness and Kaysia Earley, who has Jamaican roots. Holness is running in Congressional District 20, while Earley is running in Congressional District 22.
‘My father would never do this’ - Late New Falmouth director’s daughter slams Cooper’s Pen demolition as ‘totally insane’ Retired real estate investor and shareholder in New Falmouth Resorts Limited Marcia Ann Chisholm has expressed strong disapproval of last week’s bulldozing of homes in Cooper’s Pen, Trelawny, insisting that her late father would have opposed the move. New Falmouth Resorts Limited, a brokerage company now with “in removal” status, according to Companies Office of Jamaica (COJ) records, is the legal owner of the 705-acre property now at the centre of national discourse.
62 feet of resilience - Ja’s tallest sculpted monument rises from Melissa, reaching back to 1962 WESTERN BUREAU: Businessman Christopher Issa has commissioned what will become one of Jamaica’s tallest sculpted monument – a massive 62-foot work by renowned Jamaican sculptor Scheed Cole that is as much about the devastation of Hurricane Melissa as it is about the country’s capacity to rise again. The height is no accident. Issa deliberately settled on 62 feet as a nod to 1962, the year Jamaica gained Independence, creating a link between the monument and an artistic vision conceived at the birth of the nation but never fully realised.
‘Humanitarian crisis’ - Holness pledges Government support to displaced families at Cooper’s Pen demolition site WESTERN BUREAU: Prime Minister Dr Andrew Holness has described Monday’s mass demolition at Cooper’s Pen in Trelawny as a “humanitarian crisis”, declaring that neither he, his ministers nor the constituency’s member of parliament (MP) had prior knowledge of the operation. Addressing the controversial demolition exercise yesterday, Holness said images of displaced families, including a mother with a newborn baby, were disturbing and that the Government would have to find ways to support those affected.
CCJ president rejects ‘panel fixing’ claims - Anderson pushes back amid emails controversy plaguing court Caribbean Court of Justice (CCJ) President Justice Winston Anderson has rejected allegations that judges at the region’s highest court have been subjected to improper influence or that judicial panels have been manipulated to secure particular outcomes. In a lengthy statement issued against the backdrop of reports of tensions among judges, Anderson said allegations of “panel fixing” and attempts to influence judgments were “wholly untrue”, while acknowledging that some of his own decisions could have been handled differently.
JFJ raises rights alarm over arrest of men at Cooper’s Pen demolition Jamaicans for Justice (JFJ) wants the Jamaica Constabulary Force (JCF) to indicate why its members were present as part of what appears to have been a private demolition exercise. The lobby made the demand yesterday, citing human rights concerns in the wake of the destruction of houses in Coopers Pen, Trelawny, and the detention of several men from the community by the police before the incident.