BVIPA workers undergo ‘intensive training’ in anti-money laundering
A group of BVIPA workers during a training session recently. (BVI News photo)
One hundred-and-thirty-five BVI Ports Authority (BVIPA) workers have been introduced to more than 16 hours of ‘intensive training’ in anti-money laundering and terrorist financing.
The BVIPA subjected its workers to this training in response to a National Risk Assessment Report that has been published.
During this training, port workers were given the skills to identify suspicious transactions, identify risk factors within the port, then map those factors to international guidelines as it relates to corrective action.
“The employees were also given the knowledge to prevent themselves from being victims of suspicious transactions. As you are aware, persons may target workers in these environments — for example, the port — to be part of networks or links. So personal protection is looked at,” said Osric Forrest, an occupation analyst with Prestige Logistics, the overseas consultancy firm hired to conduct the training.
One method used to train port workers to protect themselves involved outlining ‘risk factors’ associated with becoming part of these criminal organisations, Forrest said.
“We have actually identified the penalties which persons (port workers) are subject to. It speaks to loss of property. For example, if you have a dwelling which you may have used legitimate money to build say 50 percent of the house, and the other 50 percent is built by suspicious transactions, you stand the risk of losing the entire property. There is also the loss of job, there is also imprisonment. It depends on the nature of the crime. So all these were highlighted to individuals in terms of being able to make choices,” Forrest explained.
Occupational Safety and Health
Meanwhile, ports authority workers also underwent several hours of training in one other area known as OSHA — Occupational Safety and Health Administration.
That training programme covered topics such as identifying hazards, worksite analysis, the psychology of a workplace, job-safety analysis, risk causation, accident investigation, audits, and industrial hygiene.
“We actually covered these areas in what we call a 10-hour OSHA training programme in which participants receive a certificate of training and a wallet card indicating the time when they were trained. It is recommended that individuals or employees be trained or provided with refresher training every two years,” Forrest said.
He told BVI News that port workers have responded well to the training programme, which also gave them the opportunity to voice the challenges they experience in their line of work.
“The feedback has been overwhelming. They have stressed that top management needs to be part of this process also,” Forrest said, adding that his consultancy firm has drafted a number of recommendations for the BVIPA management.
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When will they receive a raise of pay?
When will they start doing their JOBS?!
A set of complainers one place and cant do nothing else. It used to be a top agency years ago, now they fighting for bottom space with numerous other govt depts.
Imagine Irma and Maria came and gone over a year and many workers at the port are still on shift. That’s a major factor that may cause them to go down that criminal path. Port bosses need to look out for your employees or they will do it themselves. Can’t pay pocket change for them to secure millions. My two cents
You could offer to pay a bounty, say 25% of what the govt collects.
When will all government employees, private sector employees and the retired receive a cost of living adjustment/pay raise? The people are truly enduring very hard times, but are not showing it.
Yet there are thousands more who are truly silently suffering, including thousands of children. The two major areas of insufficiency are food and proper to inadequate shelter.
Yet, suffering should not be inherent in gainful employment. But across the board and capitalist world it is the normal heartless way of business owners as usual.
Even after a cost of living may be granted, by government, the private sector will continue to benefit from huge productive labour and insufficient to unlivable wages, and government does nothing for the people, as has been evident for the last sixty years.
However, so it will remain until our people unite, unite and unite as one voice against economic exploitation and demand a fair wage for a fair hour’s work.
For as long as we keep silent, that’s how long we will continue to be exploited by all.
Them need fire tha bald head P—— dock master
He does be harassing woman on the job
Don’t look out for their staff. They are slave drivers that don’t that just sitting down and collecting a fat pay of the Port.
Ok. Now
The dockmasters,cleaners and ambissidors ate still on cit down oay when all others are back on full pay and they want to keep christmas party for what
Ill like to have 1 on 1 classes with this teacher…..
To the dock masters Im getting full pay, idc bout ayo. Just do what I say and work harder. (slave whip!) I’m just going to drive around this truck all day talk on the phone all day and collect my pay.
You can tell by their faces that they seem excited and genuinely interested to be there. The same faces they have there are the same faces they have when you have to interact with them at Ports.
The VI will never grow and customer service amongst such agencies will never thrive with such low moral and just cancerous personalities.
Yes it was a very good training but if the mindset of the managers do not change the port will never be better. The managers only care about the money they making instead of trying to make the place better. Also you still have ppl that not working full hours but your hiring top managers position which is very costly and and over flocking other departments because u want to give your friend a job and coming in making 80 hours. The place would not get any better because the managers just looking out for themselves you know how much money going through the port smh. We have a new md and the place still on the same path.
Yes it was a very good training but if the mindset of the managers do not change the port will never be better. The managers only care about the money they making instead of trying to make the place better. Also you still have ppl that not working full hours but your hiring top managers position which is very costly and and over flocking other departments because u want to give your friend a job and coming in making 80 hours. The place would not get any better because the managers just looking out for themselves you know how much money going through the port smh. We have a new md and the place still on the same path.
The training was good but the managers need to go. They are very greedy cutting cost do not happen from the bottom but yet still hiring other employees including top manager and we cannot back to normal working hours.