Hustle truck office staff are hitting out over their sacking after they raised concerns about the lack of pension and health insurance cover.

Zina Godwin said she was fired last week, along with two other office workers, after being warned by supervisors not to pursue the benefits issue with the Bermuda Public Services Union (BPSU).

And minutes of a meeting with supervisors appear to show workers being threatened that Government would make the whole programme part-time rather than pay benefits.

Ms Godwin said she began working in the office of the Hustle Truck Initiative, which aims to get the jobless back to work, about a year ago.

She claimed Bermuda Housing Corporation (BHC) deputy general manager Major Barrett Dill had promised benefits would come after the Budget.

"Then he said we will get insurance when we moved office."

But when that move was not made things came to a head and a meeting was held with managers.

In a recording heard by The Royal Gazette one manager said: "Either we shut the programme down ... or we start saying you're on the truck for three days, see you later and that's only $250 and nobody can complain."

A bit later the manager is heard to say: "I am trying to stop the complaints even coming to the guy at the top.

"If it keeps going then we shut the programme down, you've got 60 people that are now unemployed and making no money compared to 60 making $525 (a week).

"So if you are saying that I've been working for a year and I want to get something in return for it I'm going to tell you up the other end they are going to tell you 'OK, you are fired and we will put someone else there now'."

She said after that meeting on May 7, Maj. Dill came down to voice concern the unions were looking into the workers' claim.

The following week she said she was given a letter, backdated to April, firing her.

A copy of the letter, seen by this paper, shows Hustle Truck coordinator Bryant Richards first praising her for her ingenuity, motivation and efficiency.

However, the second paragraph says her services are no longer required although she was "welcome to reapply to the programme at her own leisure".

Ms Godwin said: "I was hurt when they turned around and fired us for standing up for what's right."

Sharon Sterling, who coordinated the education programme for the Hustle Truck Initiative, was another fired.

She said:"I feel angry, surprised, hurt and let down. There was blatant disrespect.

"It was divide-and-rule tactics, they used us as an example to keep the flock tame if they can fire us they can fire anybody."

However, a Government spokesperson said the Hustle Truck Initiative had proven to be a resounding success by working with clients, to establish a healthy work ethic and assist them in securing full time employment.

"To date more than 90 persons have been successful in this area.

"As it relates to the allegations from these former participants of the programme, the [BHC] would not comment in depth as there are aspects of this case which are under active investigation.

"However the BHC will say this their complaints and allegations are baseless and unfounded. The very nature of the programme is not designed to provide full-time employment for the participants.

"It is designed to assist workers in taking that next step of finding regular, steady employment.

"Finally, the team at the BHC has gone above and beyond to provide the two female clients in the programme with the hand up they needed.

"And it is unfortunate that these two individuals would choose to cast a black cloud over a programme that not only provided them with assistance, but others who have found the lifeline they needed to become functioning, independent citizens of society."

Shadow Labour Minister Shawn Crockwell said the sacked workers had signed a contract which purported to exempt the Hustle Truck Initiative from providing social insurance and payroll tax to the Government.

The agreements mandated they were responsible for their own health insurance. Despite the signed, written document, the Hustle Truck Initiative was obligated by law to provide their employees with basic health insurance as well as other benefits, which they could not contract out of, said Mr. Crockwell."

Despite the title of the employment agreements, the office workers were 'employees' of the Hustle Truck Programme as defined by the Employment Act 2000."

They regularly worked well over 15 hours a week they averaged between 30-35 hours and they were employed with the programme for more than three months, thus eliminating the categories of part-time and temporary employees, said Mr. Crockwell.

He added:"The Employment Act 2000 is clear at section 2 (2) that 'an agreement to waive any of the requirements of this Act and the regulations is of no effect'.

Mr. Crockwell, said another one of the those fired, Keona Smith began talks in September 2008 with Mr. Richards to provide basic health insurance to the continuous employees of the programme as prescribed in the Health Insurance Act 1970.

"Ms Smith was told that after the next Budget the programme should have enough funding to provide health insurance.

"This is outrageous as the provision of health insurance to employees is not optional or discretionary or contingent on any Budget. It is the law. And once again a government department believes it can act in any manner it likes. Well it cannot."

And he said the threat to fire the women for getting the union involved was a blatant contravention of the Employment Act 2000 which states at section 28 (d) that it is unfair to dismiss an employee for trade union activity.

This, however, did not deter the Government from issuing termination letters to both Ms Godwin and Ms Smith on May 12, 2009, said Mr. Crockwell.

"It is unthinkable that a so-called labour Government could fire employees of a government programme for seeking the assistance of the Union. It simply boggles the mind.

"How can a programme that was designed to employ and empower Bermudians deny them their basic and lawful benefits and then fire them for standing up for their rights? What is the point of the programme?"

Mr.Crockwell said the United Bermuda Party will be starting an online petition on FaceBook to demand that Ms Godwin and Ms Smith are reinstated.

"This is unacceptable and it is time that Bermudians let this Government know that enough is enough."