PM, VSA Minister outline commitments, status of talks with fire, ambulance workers

GREAT BAY--Prime Minister Luc Mercelina and Minister of Public Health, Social Development and Labor (VSA) Richinel Brug used a public meeting of Parliament on Monday to give a detailed update on the long running dispute involving the St. Maarten Fire Department and the Ambulance Department, and the ongoing go slow actions.

Mercelina said the issues at the Fire Department are not new, but the result of “many years” of unresolved concerns about the function book, placement, promotions and pay. Although he inherited the file, he told MPs he takes full responsibility as Prime Minister and Minister of General Affairs and is committed to a solution.

He outlined a timeline showing that work on a new function book for the Fire Department started in 2021 with an external expert and management, supported by the Personnel and Organization Department. The Fire and ICT function books were combined, sent to the CCSU for advice in March 2023, received a positive CCSU opinion in May 2023, then went to the Council of Advice and through further legal and financial review. The function book was ratified by the Governor on 4 February 2025 and came into force on 25 March 2025.

Mercelina said implementation was temporarily delayed at the request of the WICSU/PSU union so its concerns could be reviewed. After that review, government decided to proceed with the ratified function book, including ICT, while keeping the door open to discuss specific Fire Department issues and to revisit the function book within three years.

He confirmed that during negotiations on a draft covenant for the Fire Department, the union set three conditions to end the go slow: retroactive payment going back to 2010, recognition of career lines and promotions, and immediate revisiting of the function book. Government responded in writing, he said, agreeing to move ahead with correct placement of staff based on the new function book, recognition of career lines, and a claim based process for retroactive payments once placement is finalized. He stressed that retroactive payment and placement both depend on having the legal placement framework in place.

Mercelina told Parliament that he has now signed the advice to establish the placement and objection committees and that the related national decree was sent to the Governor on 12 November. He informed MPs that on Monday government received confirmation that the decree for the placement process has been ratified, which means the placement trajectory for Fire Department staff can now begin, followed by the claim process for retroactive payments.

On the demand for a mediator, Mercelina said government agreed and proposed several respected persons from which the union can choose, and is also open to any other mutually accepted mediator. He argued that government has shown commitment through multiple formal letters, concrete steps and now the ratified decree, and said there is “no need” for the go slow to continue when solutions and commitments are on the table. At the same time, he acknowledged the frustration and loss of confidence among fire and ambulance workers after years of promises by successive governments, and said their dedication deserves recognition and fair treatment.

Minister Brug focused on the Ambulance Department, stressing that their current participation in the go slow is an act of solidarity with the Fire Department, not because his ministry has halted talks. He said when he took office on 26 November 2024 he met an Ambulance Department with long standing grievances about an outdated legal status, pay discrepancies, unclear allowances and overtime, and incomplete job descriptions, as well as a wish to align conditions with colleagues in Aruba and Curaçao.

Brug presented a series of meetings and actions since December 2024, starting with an initial session on 13 December where government addressed several immediate staff concerns such as equipment and comfort at the base, followed by a 3 March 2025 meeting that led to a COVID 19 recognition day for staff. A 29 April 2025 meeting dealt with working conditions during Carnival and resulted in structural arrangements for shelter and facilities in Festival Village from 2026 onward.

He said an emergency meeting on 9 May 2025 and a quarterly meeting on 23 July 2025 advanced discussions on the Ambulance Department’s legal position, including a budget allocation of 30,000 guilders in the draft 2026 budget to secure legal expertise. The ministry also explored a special benefit framework for frontline workers, but the union and staff indicated they prefer a dedicated legal status for ambulance personnel similar to the police.

On 27 August 2025 a draft covenant for the Ambulance Department was introduced, and a follow up meeting on 22 September 2025 reviewed concerns and agreed to a dedicated legal session. On 6 October 2025 the ministry presented legal options for formalizing additional benefits and protections, but ambulance staff maintained their preference for a specific rechtspositie. Brug said follow up meetings are being planned to map out the legal way forward.

Alongside negotiations, Brug highlighted measures already taken for ambulance workers, including upgraded equipment and furniture, psychological support with a dedicated budget, recognition of work anniversaries, progress on a VSA five year strategic plan, budget allocations for uniforms, training and development, and the start of updates to the function book so job descriptions reflect real responsibilities. He committed to including the union in the function book process.

Brug told MPs that, from the VSA side, the main remaining step to start formal covenant negotiations is the appointment of a representative from General Affairs so that all legal and administrative aspects can be finalized at one table. With General Affairs present, he said, the covenant, legal framework and related administrative adjustments for the Ambulance Department can be completed “without delay”.

In closing, Mercelina reiterated that government is committed to the lawful placement of all Fire Department staff based on the ratified 2025 function book, to transparent recognition and enforcement of career lines, to a structured claim process for retroactive payments once placement is completed, to revisiting the function book within three years, and to working with a mutually agreed mediator. These are all commitments, he stressed. He said the establishment and ratification of the placement and objection committees, along with the written commitments already issued, show that government intends to follow through and bring a lasting resolution for fire personnel and, by extension, the wider emergency services.

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