The employees of the Semi-autonomous Center of the electricity of Haiti (EDH) of Jacmel observed one half-day of strike Friday the 1st October 2010. The strikers were demanding the government pay their salaries as part of the subvention post-earthquake reserved to public institutions.

This protest movement is a warning to the authorities of the country, including Ronald Beaudin Minister of Economy and Finance who had made this announcement to the press.

Peter Paul Nickson, spokesman for strikers, also an employee of EDH, said "We are all victims of the January 12 earthquake and we are a public institution like all others, it is necessary that the government takes us into consideration". According to the strikers, their economic situation is very precarious, without the payment of wages they say they are unable to send their children to school and pay the monthly charges from October 4th [back to school date].

The spokesman said that "employees have made several demarches with the persons in charge concerned of the head office of the EDH, but in spite of the repeated complaints no answer was provided".

The employees of the semi-autonomous center of the electricity of Jacmel, launch an urgent call with the authorities of the government in order to do what is necessary. They imply clearly that if their legitimate claim is not satisfied, other means of pressure will be taken in a forthcoming step.

The engineer Richelet Mercury, Director of Center semi-autonomous of the EDH of Jacmel questioned on the watchword of strike of the employees declared "I received a letter of the employees Thursday, September 30 on this subject. I had called the head office of the EDH in order to inform them of the situation". The engineer specified that no satisfactory answer was given until date, concerning the payment of the wages to the employees of the EDH Jacmel, envisaged within the framework of the subvention post-earthquake.

HL/ Claudy Bélizaire