Alorica insists it exceeded gov't health guidelines after minister cites breaches
Published:Wednesday | April 22, 2020 | 12:00 AM
The Alorica call centre is insisting that it exceeded all government guidelines for the containment of the coronavirus.
Prime Minister Andrew Holness has ordered a police probe into possible breaches and last week, Health Minister Dr Christopher Tufton told a parliamentary committee that there were "clear breaches".
He later told The Gleaner that the breaches occurred after Alorica successfully completed the requisite health inspections.
According to Tufton, sick employees, for example were allowed to work inside the Portmore-based outfit instead of being sent home as stipulated in a government order.
The most recent Alorica health inspection was on April 1, that's nine days before its first worker tested positive.
Alorica has said that employee had not been at work since April 6.
But the company is maintaining that it did nothing wrong.
"We have fully complied with the requisite orders of the Honourable Prime Minister of Jamaica and we remain committed to complying with any directives of the Ministry of Health and Wellness, and indeed any relevant arm of the Government of Jamaica," said a company spokesperson in a statement.
Of the 233 confirmed coronavirus cases in Jamaica, more than 120 are linked to the Alorica call centre.
For more than a week, the company has closed its Portmore and Kingston locations telling staff that up to April 30, they will continue to receive 100 per cent of their basic salary.
It's also providing a one-time payment of $13,500 for all staff who are no longer working.
Alorica said, its highest priority remains protecting the safety, health and well-being of its team members, their families and communities as well as its clients.
On Monday, the Government ordered a 14-day closure of all BPO sites with exemptions for those handling critical sectors like telecommunications.
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