After receiving "numerous complaints" about the lack of payments from Workers’ Compensation, Sen. Gregory A. Bennerson issued a release saying it is "inexcusable that the Department of Finance and the Department of Labor fail to communicate with each" on the matter.
"The private sector pays into the fund" for those employees who are injured on the job, he said, and "there is no reason" for those departments "to hold the recipients hostage for what is legally theirs."
Bennerson added, "Again the private sector is left holding the short end of the stick. How can the private sector continue to pay into this fund, knowing that the government is not upholding its end of the obligation?" It is such situations, he said, "that have the Virgin Islands in the current mess we are in."
He said those unable to collect compensation due them are "suffering financial hardships and emotional distress due to neglect by the departments. . . There are people who are dependent on this compensation" who are "agonizing over mortgage payments, rent, electrical and water bills and the like."
Bennerson said he has been assured by Government House that the matter has been give priority, and that he will follow up on its action in response.

"Caribbean Splash" was the lead story in the Sunday Washington Post travel section, featuring all three Virgin Islands in words and photos that come like a breath of fresh (Caribbean) air.
Following a recent complimentary feature in the New York Times travel section, it looks like the territory is getting some sorely needed exposure in the frosty Northeast right where and when it still counts.
Describing the V.I. as an "odd blend of Caribbean culture and domestic familiarity," the articles were written by Carolyn Spencer Brown, who zeroes in on the spirit of each island without ignoring obvious problems.
To get to the really good part, though, Brown says, "In the end what really made the V.I. special for me – so special it was wrenching to return home – was the genuine friendliness I encountered. Everywhere."
"People in St. Croix look at St. Thomas and St. John as almost different countries," Brown heard, and bearing this in mind, set out for the big island.
Her travels in St. Croix, commencing with a seaplane trip from St. Thomas, took her, it would appear, to every leaf of the rainforest and every out-of-the-way little rest stop in between. Along, of course, with some of the more notable tourist attractions.
However, Brown seemed more interested in the feel of St. Croix than, say, a trip to Buck Island. She mentions a woman she met on St. Thomas, a 30-year resident, who had never been to St. Croix. It has simply never occurred to her. She noted the feeling of "detachment" she found in the Cruzans as opposed to their island neighbors.
She was quite taken with the beachfront bar Off the Wall, where she observed "tourists drinking their white zinfandel, and the local guys "slamming back Budweiser." And she spent time at Boz's up the road, as well, getting to know local folk. She said at sunset she felt "not just a long way from home, but from the other Virgins as well."
The disparity in the numbers of cruise ship calls between the islands didn't escape Brown's notice, nor the current economic condition of St. Croix. She mentioned the Divi Resort, noting the boost it is anticipated to bring to the island.
Brown devoted a lot of space to the island's history, from Christopher Columbus to Fountain Valley. She quotes Jacquie Hoare-Ward, innkeeper at the Hilty House Inn B&B. "This happened almost 30 years ago. It's amazing people still bring it up," Hoare-Ward said, summing up the opinion of most Cruzans.
Brown mentions Fredericksted and Christiansted, noting their uniqueness and history. "There are two real towns to explore," she writes, "not villages with soulless shopping bazaars, [but] with genuine historic character."
She concludes on a positive note — in fact, the whole article is positive – "the V.I. offers familiar comforts with just enough spice to make you feel far enough from home to forget about it for a while."
The story is currently on www.msnbc.com – Living & Travel section.

"Caribbean Splash" was the lead story in the Sunday Washington Post travel section, featuring all three Virgin Islands in words and photos that come like a breath of fresh (Caribbean) air.
Following the recent feature in the New York Times travel section, it looks like the territory is getting some sorely needed exposure in the frosty Northeast right where and when it still counts.
Describing the Virgin Islands as an "odd blend of Caribbean culture and domestic familiarity," author Carolyn Spencer Brown zeroes in on the spirit of each island without ignoring obvious problems.
To get to the really good part, though, Brown says, "In the end what really made the V.I. special for me – so special it was wrenching to return home – was the genuine friendliness I encountered. Everywhere."
Brown actually made her way off the beaten tourist path in St. Thomas and did a little exploring. She raves about, in fact, St. Thomas Dairies' Udder Delite's "Udder Delite," (almond crunch and amaretto for the uninitiated), as opposed to Mountain Top's Banana Daiquiris.
She loves Magens Bay, of course, but recommends the beginning or end of the day when the beach is "almost ethereal in its emptiness in the early evening."
Frenchtown doesn't escape her glance — she knows there are fishermen there and that some speak French, that its descendants are mainly from St. Barts, and that it boasts "some of the island's best restaurants."
En route to the other side of the island, both the Kiln Works and Mango Tango get honorable mention, to say nothing of Duffy's Love Shack and its 64-ounce drink, the Shark Tank. She remarks that Duffy's parking lot nighttime scene reminds her of a "Redskin tailgate party."
She does mention some negative elements – burglaries, for instance — but doesn't allow that to obscure her obvious delight with the territory. She says "The U.S. has lumped the islands together for ease of governing and marketing 'America's Paradise,' but it's no utopia."
And St. Thomas's traffic came to her attention: "a bear," she says. Imagine.
In fact, about her only other complaint was the multitude of cruise ship passengers. Though she seems to appreciate their importance to the economy, they "get in the way" on Main Street, at Magens Bay and at Coki Point beach.
However, she manages to skirt the crowds. Back at her hotel on Government Hill, sipping wine with her friends, she sighs as the last ship leaves port and "we feel relieved to have 'our' island back." The St. Thomas story is headed by a panoramic photo of Mahogany Run golf course.
The story is currently on www.msnbc – Living & Travel section.

Nearly six months after legislation was approved giving the territorial hospitals greater controls over their affairs, there is still some uncertainty about semi-autonomy for the health care facilities territory-wide.
During this week’s meeting of the Roy L. Schneider Hospital board, Eugene Woods, chief executive officer, lamented the continuing delays in getting notices of personnel action, hiring papers, processed for critically-needed staff.
"It’s taking on average two to four months to process the NOPA’s for nursing positions in the emergency room and other critical areas," he said adding that the hospital’s administration is currently negotiating with the central government to eliminate much of the delay in hiring, while not compromising fiscal controls.
There is every incentive for the hospital to expedite the hiring process, Woods said, given the areas in which there are, and have been staffing shortages.
"There is a shortage both here and stateside," he said noting that some states are offering signing bonuses upon hiring. "But we do not have that flexibility here."
Woods speculated that much of what is preventing the hospital from filling critical positions has to do with unfamiliarity with the semi-autonomy law passed last August. Some government officers, he admitted, are simply not comfortable being asked to do things differently than in the past.
Woods expressed confidence that the hospital and the Turnbull administration will work things out, given the governor’s commitment to the goal of greater hospital autonomy. "They agreed to fast-track the positions under the new law," he said Monday. "We have been meeting with the governor to hammer out the wrinkles in the legislation’s implementation," he added.
The hospital is reportedly working with the University of the Virgin Islands towards the identification of nurses that can be recruited locally.

Rusan Alexander was 16 when she came from Dominica to St. Thomas three and a half years ago to join her parents, who had moved to the territory a little earlier. Her mother, having heard that someone that old couldn't get into the V.I. public school system, followed a lead she had received about the Job Corps and persuaded the teenager to apply for admission to the mainland program.
Although Alexander was reluctant to travel to a land that was foreign to her, especially so soon after being reunited with her parents, it turned out to be a positive experience in both education and motivation.
Through the efforts of Advantage Resource Group, the Job Corps agency for St. Thomas and St. John, she was accepted into the Delaware Valley Job Corps Center in Callicoon, N.Y., and went on to pass her high school equivalency examinations there with very high scores and to complete clerical training.
Then the center helped her to enroll in the nearby Marist College for a semester on a trial basis. After she earned above-average grades there, the Job Corps sent her to Sullivan County Community College, with the stipulation that she maintain a grade-point average of at least 2.0, or C. She did a lot better, making the dean's list several times.
"Job Corps is normally a two-year training and education program for young people ages 16 to 24," Advantage Resource Group administrator Carmen Nibbs-O'Garro says. "Due to her exceptional abilities and her proximity to completion, Alexander was given an extension." Last December, she completed her studies for an associate of arts degree with a major in journalism.
Alexander herself says Job Corps "was quite an experience for me. Definitely there were good times and bad times." She recalls having to leave the Delaware Valley housing facility early on cold winter mornings for college classes and not getting back until after 8 p.m. Even eating required some adjustment, as "the food was very different to what we ate back on St. Thomas and in Dominica." But her efforts were worth it, she says, for "my accomplishments have overshadowed all that."
She credits part of her success to the encouragement and support the Job Corps staff provided her. At Delaware Valley, she was active in the center choir and a Big Sister mentor to new enrollees, helping them adjust to life there and taking part in peer mediation. She was also voted Student of the Month.
Her associate degree is just the start of her career path, though. The daughter of Mariana and Thomas Alexander aspires to become a lawyer, and she has a plan in place to reach that goal. She has enlisted in the Air Force and, after having been home on St. Thomas for a couple of months, will leave for basic training shortly. While she is in the service she plans to continue her college studies under the G.I. Bill.

The Deputy Prime Minister of St. Kitts and Nevis, Sam Condor, has congratulated UVI alumnus and Kittitian businessman Richard Skerritt on his appointment this week as manager of the West Indies cricket team.
Skerritt, who graduated from UVI in 1980 with a bachelor of science degree in biology, holds the distinction of having been selected as UVI's first Rhodes Scholar.
UVI President Dr. Orville Kean said Skerritt's appointment is well deserved. "I am elated to learn of UVI alumnus Richard Skerritt's appointment as manager of the West Indies Cricket Team," he said. "As UVI's first Rhodes Scholar, Mr. Skerritt's academic and athletic accomplishments are legendary. I am sure he will bring that same level of achievement to professional cricket."
The highly prestigious Rhodes Scholarship Program was created by Cecil Rhodes,an Englishman who went to South Africa in the latter 19th century and made a fortune from diamond mining. Rhodes scholars spend two or three years studying at Oxford and those who are selected must have strong intellectual ability and achievement. The major selection criteria include a high grade point average, fine character, integrity and compassion for other people, an instinct to lead and a fondness for and success in sports.
In a letter to Skerritt, Condor, who is also Minister of Sport, expressed his pride and delight, along with that of the government and people of St. Kitts and Nevis, with the West Indies Cricket Board's selection. Skerritt is managing director of Delisle Walwyn Co. Ltd., a conglomerate in St. Kitts and Nevis.
"It will be a challenging task," Condor said of Skerritt's appointment at such a crucial time in West Indies cricket. In a congratulatory letter Condor assured Skerritt that he has the support of the government and the people of St. Kitts and Nevis.
While at UVI, Skerritt was a member of the cricket team and played intramural volleyball. He visited UVI during the 1990s as a Charter Day guest speaker.

THE COMMUNITY FOUNDATION OF THE VIRGIN ISLANDS
MINI-GRANT PROGRAM FOR CHILDREN, YOUTH AND FAMILIES, 2000
NAME OF APPLICANT :_________________________________________________
MAILING ADDRESS: ___________________________________________________
_______________________________________________________________________
PHONE #: _________________________ FAX #: _____________________________
E-MAIL ADDRESS?: ____________________________________________________
CONTACT PERSON (for group applicants): __________________________________
DESCRIPTION OF PROJECT (100 Words – Be as detailed as possible, i.e. # of participants; project location; frequency of meetings; relevant literature/ documentation may be attached to this application.)
AMOUNT REQUESTED (Not more than $1,000): _______________________
WHAT WILL THE MONEY BE USED TO PAY FOR? (be specific, please)
WHAT MEASURABLE RESULTS OR PRODUCTS WILL YOU HAVE TO EVALUATE THE SUCCESS OF THIS PROJECT? (50 Words)
DESCRIBE HOW THIS PROJECT ADDRESSES THE NEEDS OF CHILDREN OR FAMILIES IN THE USVI: (50 Words)
I agree to submit a brief written report and documentation on the use of the grant at the end of the funding period: _______________________________________________ Signature of Applicant
FURTHER INFORMATION: Available from Dee Baecher-Brown, Executive Director, CFVI, P.O. Box 11790, St. Thomas, USVI 00801 or by calling 774-6031.
APPLICATION DEADLINE: Sent to CFVI, postmarked by April 12, 2000.

Four new members with varying backgrounds have been nominated to fill expired seats on the Virgin Islands Industrial Development Commission, Government House announced Tuesday.
Randolph Allen, a 39-year territory resident, has been selected for the vacant post of commission labor representative. Allen is the international representative for the United Steelworkers of America.
Well-known business leader and developer Neil Weiss, a 34-year island resident, will fill the position of John P. Woods. Weiss, along with a strong business background, has an extensive community service record with several organizations including United Way of St. Thomas, Rotary Club and the V.I. Chapter of the Boy Scouts of America.
Malcolm Plaskett of St. Croix, a retired Labor Department official, and executive assistant to former Lt. Governor Derek Hodge, will fill the post of Eling S. Joseph.
Another St. Croix resident, Mary Ann Pickard, will replace Marcia Hollins. Pickard is a retired educator and former senator.
The IDC board has seven members, headed by the commissioner of Tourism, appointee Rafael Jackson, and the director of the Internal Revenue Bureau, Claudette Farrington. Jackson will assume his new position March 20. The board has been without a permanent chairman since the current administration took office, since there has been no permanent Tourism commissioner.
The other five members of the board cannot be IDC beneficiaries or V.I. or U. S. government employees. They serve three-year terms, with a maximum of three terms. One member must be under age 30 at the time of appointment, and that seat is still empty. All new members must be approved by the Legislature.
The IDC, a powerful commission, determines tax breaks to companies to encourage them to do business in the Virgin islands.
Gov. Charles W. Turnbull said, "I look forward to the Legislature giving timely consideration to these very qualified nominees so that the important matters before the commission may be acted upon."

Four new members with varying backgrounds have been nominated to fill expired seats on the Virgin Islands Industrial Development Commission, Government House announced Tuesday.
Randolph Allen, a 39-year territory resident, has been selected for the vacant post of commission labor representative. Allen is the international representative for the United Steelworkers of America.
A well-known business leader and developer, Neil Weiss, a 34-year island resident, will fill the position of John P. Woods. Weiss, along with a strong business background, has an extensive community service record with several organizations including United Way of St. Thomas, Rotary Club and the V.I. Chapter of the Boy Scouts of America.
Malcolm Plaskett of St. Croix, a retired Labor Department official and executive assistant to former Lt. Governor Derek Hodge, will fill the post of Eling S. Joseph.
Another St. Croix resident, Mary Ann Pickard, will replace Marcia Hollins. Pickard is a retired educator and former senator.
The IDC board has seven members, headed by the commissioner of Tourism, appointee Rafael Jackson, and the director of the Internal Revenue Bureau, Claudette Farrington. Jackson will assume his new position March 20. The board has been without a permanent chairman since the current administration took office, since there has been no permanent Tourism commissioner.
The other five members of the board cannot be IDC beneficiaries or V.I. or U. S. government employees. They serve three-year terms, with a maximum of three terms. One member must be under age 30 at the time of appointment, and that seat is still empty. All new members must be approved by the Legislature.
The IDC, a powerful commission, determines tax breaks to companies to encourage them to do business in the Virgin islands.
Gov. Charles W. Turnbull said, "I look forward to the Legislature giving timely consideration to these very qualified nominees so that the important matters before the commission may be acted upon."

Four new members with varying backgrounds have been nominated to fill expired seats on the Industrial Development Commission, Government House announced Tuesday.
Randolph Allen, a 39-year territory resident, has been selected for the vacant post of commission labor representative. Allen is the international representative for the United Steelworkers of America.
Well-known business leader and developer Neil Weiss, a 34-year island resident, will fill the position of John P. Woods. Weiss, along with a strong business background, has an extensive community service record with several organizations including United Way of St. Thomas, Rotary Club and the V.I. Chapter of the Boy Scouts of America.
Malcolm Plaskett of St. Croix, a retired Labor Department official, and executive assistant to former Lt. Gov. Derek Hodge, will fill the post of Eling S. Joseph.
Another St. Croix resident, Mary Ann Pickard, will replace Marcia Hollins. Pickard is a retired educator and former senator.
The IDC board has seven members, headed by the commissioner of Tourism, appointee Rafael Jackson, and the director of the Internal Revenue Bureau, Claudette Farrington. Jackson will assume his new position March 20. The board has been without a permanent chairman since the current administration took office because there has been no permanent Tourism commissioner.
The other five members of the board cannot be IDC beneficiaries or V.I. or U. S. government employees. They serve three-year terms, with a maximum of three terms. One member must be under age 30 at the time of appointment, and that seat is still empty. All new members must be approved by the Legislature.
The IDC, a powerful commission, determines tax breaks to companies to encourage them to do business in the Virgin Islands.
Gov. Charles W. Turnbull said, "I look forward to the Legislature giving timely consideration to these very qualified nominees so that the important matters before the commission may be acted upon."