IT AIN’T ME, it is Donville Inniss who say so. He got nuff big shot lawyer friends so he could afford to say these things.
Now while delivering the feature address at the Barbados Association of Office Professionals (BAOP), a couple weeks ago, and talking ’bout the low level of productivity and linking it to the high rate of absenteeism in Barbados, Donville suggested that some doctors were issuing sick papers to obviously healthy people, so they could duck out from work.
He said: “With respect to some very questionable issuance of sick certificates in this island, there is more than a need of concern. There is now the need for the professionalism of some to be questioned.”
But I remember a few years ago, I heard something like that too, so I dig up a old Nation newspaper from May 17, 2013, and this is what I read from the then president of the Barbados Association of Medical Practitioners (BAMP), Dr Carlos Chase.
He said, “The allegation of doctors writing excessive, unnecessary or questionable sick leave certificates has been bandied about but there is no evidence of it. People say things, people whisper things but we have not seen evidence.”
But we all know, that you would be working with somebody and they would tell you, “imagine, I tell the boss I want my vacation for Xmas and he tell me ‘no’, but if he don’t give me my vacation, I gine ring two sick weeks in he tail.”
And lo and behold, when Xmas comes around, the person walks in with a smile and a sick certificate.
Not only that, I know them got some people saying Donville got to be unreasonable. Cause if during Crop Over, and them go feting a Thursday night and pick up some drinks, how he expect them to go work Friday?
And if them jump for Kadooment and all parts of them sore, how does he expect them to make it to work the following day?”
Plus we is Bajans, if the rain falling too hard, we ain’t gine work, cause we ain’t plan to drown trying to get to nobody’s work. We also like to bathe, so if the water up by we off, don’t look for we at work. And if you pay we too early on Friday, well we done work till Monday.
But Donville, there is another side to the story, it is called stress. People does look healthy but them does be stressed out, and stress does kill.
You might be working for small money, and the boss is a slave driver. Well every now and then you gine go to the doctor and get two weeks home to get away from him, so that you could live a li’l longer.
I serious, them got people who does be good till the moment them step out their car and start to walk toward their workplace, and just studying the earth demons them got to go in there and work with does give them cold sweats and headaches.
Imagine you working some place, the phone ring for you, the receptionist see you sitting at your desk and gine tell the person on the other line that you ain’t at work, simply because she don’t speak to you.
Plus them got people who does go work every day and them might as well stay home, ’cause them don’t drive a stroke when them get there.
Meanwhile you working like a donkey, them reading a newspaper all day, and the boss ain’t telling them nothing.
Now tell me if you ain’t gine stand home sick sometimes. See ya.
E-mail: madderic@hotmail.comtwitter@madderic
