The umbrella trade union body on Thursday accused the government of sidelining the Social Partnership and shirking its duty to provide essential public services, after plans emerged to sell off the Transport Board and transfer ownership of the island’s fleet of electric buses to ex-employees.
The details of the restructuring were outlined in an official Ministry of Transport and Works letter circulated last week.
The three-page document, signed by Permanent Secretary Jehu Wiltshire, confirms Cabinet’s approval of a transition to a new Barbados Mass Transit Authority, which would regulate public transport and hold the bill of sale for the buses.
Under the plan, all Transport Board workers would be severed, with discussions to be held with the relevant unions on separation packages. Former workers of both the Transport Board and the Transport Authority would then receive priority access to becoming owner-operators and would be eligible for financing at two per cent interest.
The government would also cover half the electricity costs for charging buses on Authority property, and fund 25 per cent of battery replacements through a sinking fund.
CTUSAB said it was “surprise[d] to learn of the intention of the Government of Barbados to privatise the local public transport sector”, warning that arrangements to discuss the proposal with the Barbados Workers’ Union took place “without any prior consultation with the Social Partnership of Barbados”.
The umbrella body said in a statement: “Based on the government’s promotion that ‘we in the Social Partnership are in this together’, CTUSAB considers this development and intended actions as disrespectful and an affront to the members of the Social Partnership.”
CTUSAB argued that the proposal represents “a blatant dereliction of its responsibility to provide the public services of transportation, healthcare and education to the nation”, insisting that the focus of government “should never be on profit making”.
The congress further highlighted existing problems in the sector, including inconsistent service by private operators. It noted that minibuses and route taxis often fail to complete their full routes and in many cases do not operate after 6 p.m. “In short, these private operators seem not to have an obligation to provide a service between 6 a.m. and 12 midnight, or for every day of the week; including Sundays.”
CTUSAB called on the government to strengthen — not scale down — the public transport system, recommending investment in an expanded bus fleet and stronger regulation of minibuses, route taxis and the Transport Augmentation Programme, in which public service vehicles share routes with the Transport Board.
It also warned against reducing the Transport Board’s challenges to profitability alone, cautioning that doing so “risk[s] overlooking the broader national purpose of public mobility” and could worsen access for vulnerable groups who rely heavily on scheduled service.
As an alternative, the congress proposed a capacity-building programme to improve management, expand technology use and optimise route performance through data-driven planning. (SM)
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