(PRESS RELEASE) — Acting Labour Commissioner Mrs. Cornelia Jn. Baptiste has resolved an industrial impasse between the management of Secure St. Lucia Ltd and the National Workers Union (NWU). Seven days ago the NWU gave the security company a 14-day ultimatum to either engage the Union in an attempt to settle outstanding industrial matters or face protest action by the ...

(PRESS RELEASE) — Superbrands revealed today that luxury Caribbean hotel brand Sandals Resorts has been awarded Consumer Superbrands status for 2019. The Consumer Superbrands survey has been tracking the perception of a wide-range of brands in the UK since 1995. This year’s survey featured 1,596 brands across 78 different categories, ranging from ‘Automotive Products’ to ‘Vitamins & Supplements’. Only the ...

(PRESS RELEASE) — “After my job training at Sandals Grande Saint Lucian Spa and Beach Resort, I knew that was where my heart wanted to be, so I applied to be a porter. When I got the call for the interview, although a hurricane was coming, I still went. I can remember clearly people walking around the resort with their ...

(PRESS RELEASE) — As part of its system of empowering members through timely provision of information on matters of value, the Saint Lucia Chamber of Commerce Industry and Agriculture hosted a full-house Executive Luncheon where the Saint Lucia Air and Sea Ports Authority shared its plans and vital information on the Hewanorra International Airport (HIA) Redevelopment Project. The Executive Luncheon ...

(PRESS RELEASE) — Gordon “Butch” Stewart, chairman and founder of Sandals Resorts accepted the Chancellor’s Award on behalf of his company at the 10th Annual University of the West Indies (UWI) Toronto Benefit Gala held at the Ritz-Carlton Toronto on April 6, 2019. The Chancellor’s Award is presented to a Caribbean organization in recognition of their extraordinary international success and ...

(PRESS RELEASE) — Acting Labour Commissioner Miss Cornelia Jn. Baptiste has summoned the management of Secure St. Lucia Ltd. and the National Workers Union (NWU) to a conciliatory meeting at the Department of Labour on Wednesday, April 17, 2019 at 2 p.m. The purpose of the meeting is to discuss a 14-day ultimatum letter from the NWU. The union’s letter ...

(PRESS RELEASE) — In a Budget Address that centred on people-centric growth and bringing relief to Saint Lucians, Prime Minister Honourable Allen Michael Chastanet announced personal income tax reform that would see thousands of low-income earners pay less and in some cases no personal income taxes. This is a bold initiative and in keeping with the government’s promise of less ...

(PRESS RELEASE) — The St. Lucia National Lottery extends congratulations to the latest Power Play winner of $33,267, Emerson Estaphane. He won on a quick pick ticket he purchased from Laura Andrew in Canaries on February 18, 2019. The top prize was won on February 20, 2019 on the numbers 02-03-13-28, Power Pick 05 with a ticket letter J. On ...

(PRESS RELEASE) — Saint Lucians could expect noticeable improvements and a possible re-purposing of the popular William Peter Boulevard in the coming years, as plans are moving afoot for a potential enhanced appearance of the area. This initiative is being spearheaded by the Ministry of Tourism, through the OECS Regional Tourism Competitiveness Project (ORTCP). During the last week of March, ...

(PRESS RELEASE) — The Office of the Mayor is pleased to inform the general public and members of the business community, in particular vendors operating in the provisions market, of the commencement of the first phase of the Castries Market Redevelopment Project. Work is scheduled to commence within two weeks. In preparation for first-phase of construction, the former Fire Service ...

(PRESS RELEASE) — The public is hereby notified that in keeping with changes in international oil prices and government’s application of the modified market pass-through petroleum pricing mechanism, the retail price of gasoline, diesel, kerosene and LPG 20, 22 and 100 lb cylinders has changed. The price changes take effect from Monday April 15, 2019: – Gasoline increased from $2.94 to ...

(PRESS RELEASE) — Following intense pitch training and a packed program, six startups qualified to participate in the final battle of the 2019 Get In The Ring St Lucia Competition at the Caribbean Cinemas on March 28, 2019. Mr. Gilland Avril of Ngage and Caleb Jallim of Fleek It started off the battles, with Amy Antoine of T&A Household Décor ...

(PRESS RELEASE) — Soon after completing the University of the West Indies Open Campus NGO Professional Management certification course, St Lucia Photographer Kirk Elliott signed up for the National Geographic Educator certification programme on the recommendation of one of his St Lucia Photo Tours clients, Sandra Turner, who at the time was special assistant to the dean of the Hajim School ...

BRIDGETOWN, Barbados (CMC) — The cash-strapped, Antigua-based regional airline, LIAT, says despite pilots and its workers across all its destinations agreeing to a 6 per cent salary cut, the airline is still facing a severe financial problem and may require additional salary cuts from its employees, the Caribbean Media Corporation (CMC) has learned. According to an internal document seen by ...

(SNO) — The Civil Service Association (CSA) is threatening strike action of its members at the Inland Revenue Department if health and safety issues facing them are not addressed by April 1, 2019. In a letter to Acting Permanent Secretary in the Department of the Public Service, Peggy-Ann Soudat, CSA General Secretary, Claude Paul, said if the issues are not ...

(SNO) — There is no end in sight, at least for the time being, in a strike by firefighters after they rejected the latest offers by the Allen Chastanet-led government. A letter, bearing Chastanet’s signature on the latest offers, was promptly rejected by the firefigthers. Chairman of the Saint Lucia Firefighters Association (SLFA), Shane Felix, said it did not bear ...

BRIDGETOWN, Barbados, Mar 20, CMC – St. Lucia is expected to record economic growth of three per cent this year with the Barbados-based Caribbean Development Bank (CDB) saying that the growth appears poised to increase in large part due to private and public sector construction programmes coming back on stream. In its “Country Economic Review 2018-St. Lucia”, the region’s premier ...

(SNO) — With an impasse between firefighters and government still ongoing, Chairman of the Saint Lucia Firefighters Association (SLTA), Shane Felix, said both the ruling United Workers Party (UWP) and opposition Saint Lucia Labour Party (SLP) have failed them. The firefighters are presently on strike over wage negotiations and other matters, which they say have been affecting the service for decades ...

(SNO) — Home Affairs Minister, Hermangild Francis, has described Fire Chief Joseph Joseph as a “toothless tiger” with no real powers, especially in the ongoing impasse between the government and firefighters over wage negotiations and other matters. Firefighters in Saint Lucia are presently on strike. One of their grievances has been the matter of promotion and the Saint Lucia Firefighters ...

(SNO) — National Security and Home Affairs Minister, Hermangild Francis, has expressed surprise that he was not consulted in a dispute between firefighters and government over wage negotiations and other matters affecting the fire service. The fire service falls under Francis’ portfolio and firefighters have taken industrial action. He said at a press briefing he has a good relationship with ...

(PRESS RELEASE) – At its January press conference, Invest Saint Lucia (ISL) announced plans to develop a number of residential areas, including approximately 11 acres of land in Beauchamp, Micoud, and approximately 5 acres in Bois Jolie, Dennery. According to Chief Executive Officer, Roderick Cherry, the Beauchamp and Bois Jolie developments are part of an overall development plan being conceptualized ...

(SNO) — Labour Minister\ Stephenson King has accused the Saint Lucia Firefighters Association (SLFA) of violating a collective agreement made between itself and the government as a SFLA strike continues on the island. He said in a statement that the matter has to be determined, however, he personally believes that the firefighters have failed to comply to the agreement. His remarks ...

(SNO) — The product of a Saint Lucian entrepreneur may be heading to the US market with the Miami Chamber of Commerce agreeing to explore the use of his fertilizer on baseball fields and golf courses. Johanan Dujon, owner of Algas Organics, has been converting Sargassum seaweed into bio-fertilizers and household chemicals, abating the detrimental effect of the seaweed’s hydrogen ...

CASTRIES, St. Lucia, Mar 18, CMC – The St. Lucia government Monday reiterated its position that unless there’s a fundamental change to the operating structure of the cash-strapped regional airline, LIAT, Castries would not be investing financially in the airline. “If St. Lucia’s going to buy shares, it’s going to be buying shares into an entity that we know is ...

(SNO) –Prime Minister Allen Chastanet has met with stakeholders across the island to discuss concerns raised by the European Union (EU) over the island’s tax-exemption regime. In February, the EU wrote to Chastanet saying Saint Lucia will be blacklisted by December 31, 2019 if it does not abolish a tax-preferential regime for foreign companies working here. The regime gives foreign ...

(SNO) — Saint Lucia will be decriminalizing cannabis, Prime Minister Allen Chastanet has told The Saint Lucia Star newspaper. During an interview with the newspaper last week, Chastanet said the agreement was reached after “good meetings” last year. “We had some very good meetings before Christmas and we’ve agreed that we’ll be going through a process of decriminalization,” he stated. Statistics ...

CASTRIES, St. Lucia, Mar 17, CMC – The St. Lucia government, describing the ongoing strike action by firefighters here as illegal, said “meaningful” negotiations would only begin when the workers immediately report back to work. Labour Minister Stephenson King, in a March 15 letter to the St. Lucia Fire Service Association (SLFSA), said that the industrial action “goes contrary to ...

CASTRIES, St. Lucia, Mar 16, CMC – Firefighters say they will stay away from their jobs complaining that they were not satisfied with the outcome of a meeting earlier this week with Labour Minister Stephenson King. “It looks as though we will be home for the weekend because we have not received anything tangible from the authorities,” president of the ...

(SNO) — National Security Minister Hermangild Francis is expressing surprise that firefighters on the island went on strike earlier this week, saying they knew a meeting was to be held with the Government Negotiating Team (GNT) later in the week. The Saint Lucia Fire Service Association said it was taking industrial action from Wednesday, March 13 over the issue of ...

(PRESS RELEASE) — The directors and executive management team of Bay Gardens Resorts continue to show dedication to recognize the outstanding efforts of the valued team members of the locally-owned and managed resort chain. It is in this vein that the Annual Staff Awards Ceremony & Dinner was held at the Bougainvillea Conference Room, Bay Gardens Hotel on Saturday, March ...

(PRESS RELEASE) — The United States market has been one of the most coveted yet difficult markets to penetrate. Border regulations, including sanitary and phyto-sanitary regulations, and other non-tariff barriers, have made it increasingly difficult for small countries like Saint Lucia to successfully penetrate these markets. Export Saint Lucia has been actively pursuing export opportunities in the United States, and ...

(SNO) — President of the Saint Lucia Fire Service Association Shane Felix said the strike action by firefighters across the island that started on March 13 is still underway despite a meeting on Thursday evening between his executive and Acting Prime Minister and Minister for Labour Stephenson King. Felix told St. Lucia News Online on Friday that as a result ...

(SNO) –The Consumer Affairs Department in Saint Lucia is reporting a high rate of redress from complaints made by people who purchase items on the island. However, the department stated that in order for their issues to be address, consumers must make a report to the Complaints and Investigation Unit at the department. “The point of intervention of my department ...

(PRESS RELEASE) — The National Competitiveness and Productivity Council (NCPC) via funding from Compete Caribbean commenced work on the National Competitiveness Agenda for St. Lucia. The National Competitiveness Agenda, once completed. will provide the NCPC with the framework to measure how well St. Lucia is performing as it relates to various actions, policies and initiatives undertaken to improve the island’s ...

(PRESS RELEASE) — On February 22, 2019, the management and employees of the St. James’s Club Morgan Bay St. Lucia once again gathered as one in a moment of celebration, thankfulness and great appreciation for our family of employees. Management, under the patronage of Senior Vice President of Operations, Mr. Mark A. Grebby, and Resort Manager Mrs. Marina Francois Barthelmy, ...

(PRESS RELEASE) — Massy Stores is once again recognizing the dedicated work and commitment of its team members. The company held its 2019 Annual Staff Recognition Awards ceremony at the Sandals Halcyon recently. Company officials say the annual event is an opportunity to say thank you to those whose performance on the job ensures that Massy Stores can continue to ...

(SNO) — Under pressure from several unions on the island over the slow pace of salary negotiations for the 2016 to 2019 triennium, the Allen Chastanet-led administration has said it is in fact listening to the concerns of public officers. The matter has ignited disruptions in the public service earlier this week with teachers and students staying away from school ...

(THE VERGE) — Facebook and Instagram appear to be partially down for some users around the world today. While you can open both platforms and some services appear to have been restored, users are reporting issues with sending messages on Messenger, posting to the feed on all Facebook products, and accessing other features on Facebook.com, Instagram, and WhatsApp. Even Facebook-owned ...

(PRESS RELEASE) – HRWise will host another HR Forum. This time the focus will be on improving the standard of customer service and customer satisfaction in St. Lucia. Core to the discussion will be the principles of quality management and the value that adopting a Quality Management System (QMS) can bring to the success of our local businesses. The feature ...

(SNO) — Firefighters in Saint Lucia have given government notice that they are taking industrial action today, March 13, over the vexing issue of salary negotiations for the 2016 to 2019 triennium and other matters facing the fire service. They took the decision on Tuesday at a meeting at the Vieux Fort Fire Station, which is attached to the Hewannora ...

(PRESS RELEASE) — An award-winning cocktail takes more than simply mixing the ingredients together. That’s the easy part. Passion and personality are what make it a work of art. That’s the invaluable lesson Craig Andes has learned over the years and at just 22, he knows the sky is the limit. Craig, who currently serves up his creations at the ...

DETROIT (AP) — A type of Takata air bag inflator once thought to be safe has now come under scrutiny after a crash and explosion in Maryland injured the driver of a Honda minivan. The incident forced Honda on Tuesday to recall about 1.2 million vehicles in North and Central America from the 2001 to 2016 model years that were ...

(PRESS RELEASE) — The North American and Caribbean basin financial sector will meet in coming days for a significant anti-money laundering (AML) event. The Florida International Bankers Association (FIBA) is staging its 19th AML Compliance Conference in Miami, Florida, USA, March 11th to 13th. The theme of this year’s gathering is Shaping The Future Of The Fight Against Financial Crime. ...

(SNO) — Saint Lucia is among countries where a woman is more likely to be a manager than a man, activist Zanda Desir has said. Desir is a Women Deliver young leader and #NotAskingForIt campaign activist, who was born and raised in Saint Lucia. She told the Jamaica Observer’s All Women feature recently that there is an increase in “Girl Bosses” ...

(USA TODAY) — Hyundai and Kia are recalling over 500,000 vehicles as both companies continue to be investigated by the federal government. The largest individual recall involves about 380,000 Kia Soul vehicles from 2012 to 2016 with 1.6-liter engines. According to National Highway Traffic Safety Administration documents, high exhaust gas temperatures can cause damage to the catalytic converter, which can ...

(PRESS RELEASE) — St. Lucia’s renowned luxury resort Anse Chastanet has received a British Airways Customer Excellence Award for 2018 with an impressive overall rating of 9.1 out of 10. Speaking from Germany, where she is attending one of the world’s leading travel trade shows, ITB Berlin, resort Executive Director Karolin Troubetzkoy attributed the award not only to location, but ...

(PRESS RELEASE) — The public is hereby notified that in keeping with changes in international oil prices and government’s application of the modified market pass-through petroleum pricing mechanism, the retail price of LPG 20, 22 and 100 lb cylinders has changed. The price of gasoline, diesel and kerosene remains unchanged. The price changes take effect from Monday, March 4, 2019: ...

(JAMAICA OBSERVER) — Executive Director of the Jamaica Cancer Society, Yulit Gordon, has challenged insurance companies to introduce more affordable critical illness plans so that more persons can have access and be adequately prepared for critical illnesses. She said that contributing to the fear factor in dealing with illnesses like cancer is that persons face difficulties in acquiring health insurance ...

(PRESS RELEASE) — The Saint Lucia Tourism Authority is pleased with the reduction in airfares for flights between Miami, Florida and Saint Lucia. With even more direct flight options available to the destination, American Airlines is now offering round-trip fares for as low as US$363 from Miami. You can now book your vacation to the ‘World’s Leading Honeymoon Destination’ at ...

(PRESS RELEASE) — The National Council of and for Persons with Disabilities (NCPD), through the assistance of the Australian government’s Direct Aid program, the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, and the Rotary Club of Gros Islet, has officially launched a prosthetic leg manufacture center at its head office in Carellie, Castries. Four Saint Lucians—three of whom use ...

(PRESS RELEASE) — Caribbean Galaxy Real Estate Corporation has announced it will break ground later this year for construction of the Canelles Resort, which includes Dreams & Zoetry, offering 330 beachfront rooms overlooking the Atlantic Ocean to the South, together with an oceanfront residence with 380 apartments. The dual resorts – Dreams and Zoetry – will offer restaurants, bars, conference ...

(PRESS RELEASE) — Bay Gardens Resorts has been awarded St. Lucia’s first Green Globe Gold member certification. Three of the resort group’s five properties have been awarded this global certification for sustainable tourism – Bay Gardens Beach Resort and Spa, Bay Gardens Hotel and Bay Gardens Inn. Green Globe’s Gold Member status is awarded to members that have been certified ...

(SNO) — In light of the eviction of coconut vendors from the Gros Islet Highway by the Gros Islet Constituency Council (GICC), Opposition Leader Philip J. Pierre is proposing a system of controlled vending for them. He agreed that vending along the busy thoroughfare created some measure of concern and there should be need for monitoring but questioned whether eviction ...

(SNO) — A house in Saint Lucia has been raising a few eyebrows in the real estate world because of its hefty US$15-million price tag. The property, which forms part of Sugar Beach Viceroy Resort in Soufriere, was featured by Fredrik Eklund on his Emmy-nominated hit television series “Million Dollar Listing: New York” on Bravo TV, recently. Eklund is a ...

(SNO) — Saint Lucian Nestor Alfred has been named the chairman of the Citizenship by Investment Program Association (CIPA), a regional body that is made up of Citizenship by Investment (CUI) unit heads of countries that have such investment programs. Alfred, who is head of Saint Lucia’s Citizenship by Investment Unit, was appointed on January 31. CIPA is a regional ...

(PRESS RELEASE) — – The Castries Constituency Council on Monday enjoyed a pleasant and positive consultative meeting with vendors of the provisions market. The consultation was not the first with the vendors, and focused on the first phase of the Market Redevelopment Project which would result in the relocation of the provisions market vendors to facilitate the extension and construction ...

(PRESS RELEASE) — There continues to be significant strides in the export of agricultural products from Saint Lucia. Recently, Mangal Trading, spearheaded by young entrepreneur Nila Mangal, successfully shipped a consignment of bananas, plantains, and cucumbers to a buyer in the United Kingdom. According to Mangal, the journey towards this recent export of produce has been a difficult one, having faced ...

(SNO) — Mayor of Castries, Peterson Francis, has said that most Saint Lucians have a culture of resisting change and the only thing they like new is “new clothes”. He was speaking in reference to a protest by workers of the Castries Constituency Council (CCC) last week, saying they took such action because of their reluctance to accept change. He ...

(PRESS RELEASE) – St. Lucia’s iconic Jade Mountain Resort has received more top international travel accolades while its sister resort Anse Chastanet continues to be recognized by the world’s most discriminating travelers. Naming Jade Mountain the number one “Best Hotel in the Caribbean”, U.S. News & World Report rhapsodized about the resort’s high-rise vistas of The Pitons, with architecture that ...

(PRESS RELEASE) — In celebration of St. Lucia’s 40th anniversary of independence on Friday, February 22, 2019, Bay Gardens Resorts in St. Lucia is offering St. Lucian residents 40 percent off food and beverage all day long on Independence Day. Sanovnik Destang, executive director of the St. Lucian family-owned-and-operated group of hotels, said Bay Gardens’ award-winning culinary team was gearing up ...

(SNO) — A person claiming to be one of the passengers who was stranded at the Hewannora International Airport in Vieux Fort recently, is blaming British Airways (BA), and not the shortage of hotel rooms in Saint Lucia, as the reason for the incident. The Sun newspaper reported that dozens of BA passengers were forced to sleep on the airport ...

(SNO) —  With over 485,000 Instagram followers and almost 220,000 Youtube channel subscribers, Princess Bellaaa is now one of the most popular professional full-time makeup artists in New York City. And she is originally from Dennery village, Saint Lucia. Princess Bellaaa, born Karla Tobie, moved to the United States at an early age and has risen to be one of ...

(SNO) –Altough they were defiant and appeared resolute in the face of relocation, coconut vendors along the Gros Islet highway seemed to have lost steam in a short-lived protest. HTS is reporting that during a visit to the site on Wednesday, only one vendor was seen in the area which is normally filled and buzzing with activity. This was a ...

(SNO) — The St. Lucia Civil Service Association (CSA) has written to government officials requesting an update, on behalf of their members, on the pending closure of the St. Lucia Marketing Board (SLMB) In one of the two letters — both of which were sent to the media on Thursday — the CSA said it is concerned that their members ...

(SNO) — Veteran journalist and communications/media specialist Clinton Reynolds is job hunting again. According to reliable sources,  Reynolds is no longer working at the St. Lucia Tourism Authority (SLTA) because his position was made “redundant”. His last day of work as chief communications officer was on Monday, Feb. 11, 2019, reliable sources confirmed. He joined the SLTA on April 23, ...