PORT OF SPAIN, Trinidad, Nov 15, CMC -The Trinidad and Tobago government Friday said a 12 per cent wage increase promised to workers at the Port of Port of Spain in 2015 did not follow the guidelines and as a result would not be honoured.
Works and Transport Minister Rohan Sinanan told Parliament based on legal advice from two senior counsels, the Port Authority of Trinidad and Tobago (PATT) and the Seamen and Waterfront Workers Trade Union (SWWTU) had been advised that the memorandum of agreement (MOA) is not enforceable.
“The SWWTU was provided with an offer for the period 2014-17 and 2017-2020. The SWWTU has refused the submitted offer, Sinanan told legislators, adding that the PATT has been “actively engaging the union to bring about a settlement on this matter without success”.
Port workers have taken industrial action for over a month now and the SWWTU President General Michael Annisette has described the workers’ action as a response to several issues at the port.
(Details in Business section)
CMC/2024