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Mother Of Two Says She Was Cut Off By GOB In IBC Takeover
posted (November 22, 2013)
Tonight, mother of two Shari Muschamp feels like it's her against the world. She was working as a receptionist at the former Ashcroft Allied companies, International Business Company Registry and IMMARBE until government took them over in June of this year.

The public pronouncement from the Prime Minister was that no local staff would be fired. But Mushcamp - who had a difficult pregnancy - was on extended sick leave when the government took over - and it seems that when the changeover occurred - and the staff were re-hired as public officers, she was simply left off the employee roll.

It wasn't an oversight, Government's legal adviser told Muschamp's attorney that no offer of employment was made to her by government because she was thought to be medically unfit to work. He based that on the fact that by April of 2013, she had exhausted her 16 days sick leave for the year, yet she remained on prolonged sick leave, which earned her a warning from the former management for it.

Well, she says she is being done an injustice - because her old employer, BISL didn't fire her and the new bosses, government never took her on. In the meantime, she says she has had to move in with relatives and can't afford to feed her kids. And so, since she was never formally terminated, today she showed up at Immarbe because it's the end of her maternity leave. That didn't go well because she was shown out - we spoke to her outside:

Shari Muschamp
"Yesterday my maternity leave finished and so today I came in to report to work as usual and I was made to understand when I came in that I am not to be on the compound. I am being fired, but there is no letter of termination, no dismissal - nothing I have received as yet."

Jules Vasquez
"What happened when you try to report to work?"

Shari Muschamp
"I went in to work this morning and the security guard told me that I had to be escorted out of the building, Mr. Ghandi doesn't want me on the compound. Santiago Gonzalez which is the former deputy registrar is stating that he cannot give me a dismissal letter, which it has to come from Mr. Ghandi. Mr. Ghandi made it clear to the security that he does not want me in the building."

"He (Mr. Ghandi) has written that I am medically unfit for government service. I had a thyroid condition and the pregnancy had act up and I think it's a discrimination to tell someone that they are medically unfit when he is not a doctor. He has not taken me to a medical board, Social Security hasn't taken me to a medical board - it's wrong. I think it's something illegal."

Jules Vasquez
"Ma'am, were you an employee in good standing at the time of the takeover? Was there a personal file on you or something that indicated maybe? Be as honest as you can - maybe you are always late for work or always sick."

Shari Muschamp
"There was a file where I was sick a lot due to the pregnancy that I have received a warming letter from Catherine Haylock. This occurred during my pregnancy and with the labour law you have all rights to be. I can't control my sickness if I am pregnant. I am a woman, they can't tell me I can't get pregnant and not get sick."

Audrey Matura-Shepherd, attorney
"One warning letter is no basis for you to say the person has not been a good employee. If she was not a good employee from 2008 onward, she would have been dealt with, they can't prove that. All I am saying is that they don't need to be heartless. They know that somewhere one of them have to compensate her for something and so the other recourse is that we take all of them to court, let the court decide, since they can't decide who will be responsible. In the meantime you have to understand what this lady is going through; you don't even get the pittance that Social Security is supposed to give you, you don't even have a salary. Labour Department says they will help place her for a job, but because Mr. Ghandi says she is medically unfit, the people don't even want to entertain the interview."

Shari Muschamp
"I have two children and I am emotionally wrecked at this point. It's hard to deal with my kids. I hate speaking about it, it's hard, they demoralize me as a woman and as a mother and it's even harder to have a child that ask you for something to eat and you can't provide it. They took away everything, I can't afford to pay my bills, everything is gone."

"This is a last resort, I am left without anywhere else to go, anything else to do because being an underdog to them, it's okay to them to just brush their feet on me like I am a mat. It's unfair, they sit up there with their big cheque and their big salary and forget poor people and far as I am concerned I pay my taxes in Belize. Whenever I go to the shop I have to pay tax. I deserve to get justice."

Today we spoke to legal advisor Gian Ghandi who told us that first off, her social security Maternity benefits were not denied, they were approved - he believes in error by a clerk in the IBC office. As for not taking her back - Ghandi says her maternity leave finished today - and so she is not expected back until Monday. So what will happen on Monday? He says Government is, quote, "planning our position as to what we will do." We'll wait and see.

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