News Briefs

Alorica cuts staff amid coronavirus fallout

A number of Alorica employees who are not able to work from home have been laid off for a period of 30 days, starting yesterday.

While the exact number of employees affected could not be ascertained, The Gleaner learnt that the company advised the workers over the weekend that the affected staff would be paid 25 per cent of their basic pay from May 4 to May 10.

The displaced staff were told that they would will continue to receive their health benefits until further notice and that they could apply to the Government for further COVID-19 relief.

Alorica said it has been forced to take containment measures for its operations.

The majority of the island’s confirmed COVID-19 cases have been linked to the call centre, which has operations in Portmore, St Catherine and Kingston.

UWI, WHO collaborate on COVID-19 drug study

PORT-OF-SPAIN, Trinidad (CMC):

The University of the West Indies (UWI) and the World Health Organization (WHO) are collaborating on a large international project called Solidarity, which is examining options for drugs to treat the deadly COVID-19, which has claimed more than 300,000 lives globally.

“This is a large international trial that will be looking at options for therapy,” said dean of the Faculty of Medical Sciences at The UWI’s St Augustine campus, Professor Terence Seemungal.

“We have a committee across the four countries (Trinidad and Tobago, Barbados, Jamaica, and The Bahamas) that is chaired by one of our colleagues, Professor Marvin Reid of the Mona campus,” Seemungal said.

He told reporters that apart from its international design, the study will also examine four therapeutic options, namely Remdesivir, which was originally developed as an Ebola treatment; Ritonavir, an oral medication that is used for treating human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infection; Interferon, which is used to treat various cancers; and hydroxychloroquine, used to treat and prevent malaria.

He said that these drugs would be used “versus standard care or usual care – whatever that is in the country in which the study is being done”.

“We hope that after this study, there will be clear evidence as to which of these drugs will help in the treatment of COVID-19,” he said.

Jackson takes up post in Geneva

BRIDGETOWN, Barbados (CMC):

Former executive director of the Caribbean Disaster Emergency Management Agency (CDEMA), Ronald Jackson, has been appointed to head the United Nations Disaster Risk Reduction and Recovery for Building Resilience Team in Geneva.

Last week, CDEMA announced that the Jamaican was leaving his post after seven years.

“This is a bittersweet moment for me. I am excited at the opportunity to be able to practise in a global capacity but I feel a sense of duty to the Caribbean Community and as such, a part of me will miss working in a context that inspires innovation,” Jackson said as he left the CDEMA. “However, I feel that I am leaving behind a wonderful platform for the continued advancement of the region’s integrated risk management agenda and the continued growth of the agency.”