VBC: Curacao under legal restraint

September 01, 2008 7:30 AM

The Curaçao Trade and Industry Association (Vereniging Bedrijfsleven Curaçao - VBC) is of the opinion that it is highly conspicuous that the national government and Parliament had the intention to completely ignore the request and the policy of the Island government of Curacao to increase the minimum wage with at the most 5 percent, while the requests of the other islands were considered.

In VBC’s newest attack on the increase of the minimum wage effective today, the association says: “How is it possible that in the midst of the political restructuring process, in which the increase of the autonomy of the islands is central point, the national government and Parliament are of the opinion that active measures must be taken regarding the salary policy in Curacao? That’s not only total lack of respect for the BC of Curaçao, but must even be considered as a vote of no-confidence. Where are the opposition parties of Curacao that scream out loud that the autonomy of the island must not be messed with? Extremely remarkable that evidently they went along with the fact that it is the other islands that decide what’s good or bad for Curacao.”

Opposition bigwig Charles Cooper (MAN) says that the increase of 15 percent is actually already out of date: “With all the price increases of fuel, water, food, and so on, this increase should have been with at least 25 percent. “Thus we are not just against this increase, but would like to see it higher.”

According to the VBC, ‘Curacao is definitely under legal restraint’ and ‘this political stunt is a low point and also extremely sad’.

(Source: National Newspaper Amigoe)

29 August, 2008