The President of the Amalgamated Workers Union, Michael Prentice addresses what the union describes as the difficult and deplorable conditions workers in the Transportation Division of the Port of Spain City Corporation are forced to work under.
00:00 Prentice explains that the standoff between the workers and the city corporation earlier this week that led to the non-collection of garbage in Porto Spain is over.
00:12 He tells TV6 that meetings were held with the chief executive officer of the corporation and also with the chief personnel officer.
00:21 However, he notes that the genesis of the problem was the unauthorized action of a supervisor.
00:27 He adds that it was more than just an issue of overtime.
00:32 It was about trampling on the rights of workers and the violation of the collective agreement.
00:38 He adds that he was not aware of the fact that the supervisor had gone to the workers and mislead the workers in saying to the workers that he has a letter from the acting CEO.
00:50 He would have pointed out to them what they should do and how they should change what was being done for more than five decades.
00:59 And this was clearly articulated and found out as late as yesterday as it relates exactly what this supervisor would have done.
01:10 No authorization to do it. He would have done that and create this turmoil.
01:16 The union leader also notes a statement issued by the mayor stating quote the amendment to the 2017 to 2019 collective agreement negotiated and signed by Mr.
01:28 Prentice and the union materially changed the approach to calculating overtime wages for workers.
01:35 End quote. However, Mr. Prentice tells TV6 that is incorrect and he challenges the mayor to provide evidence of that.
01:44 In fact, he says no conversation regarding overtime was discussed with the CPU during the 2014 to 2017 or the 2017 to 2019 negotiations.
01:57 I want to put it on notice that if you cannot bring evidence and proof that substantially that I might have been this would have changed this would have
02:10 negotiated this and as an amendment to the collective agreement.
02:17 If he cannot bring evidence to show that this was done, I let him know publicly.
02:25 I've already spoken to my attorneys and he will be hearing from them in the next couple of days.
02:31 Prentice further tells of what the union regards as poor conditions workers are made to operate under.
02:40 He notes that during the last three months, the union held a meeting with one of the corporation's attorneys on the matter.
02:48 This officer informed the corporation that there was in clear violation of OSHA and the things that the union were complaining about at the union was absolutely correct.
03:00 And then need to treat with this. This is preventative maintenance, servicing of the vehicles, no chemicals that sanitize and clean the vehicles when the vehicles go to the landfill.
03:13 The compound of itself is supposed to be washed out.
03:16 He says the sanitization of the compound still has not been done.
03:21 Further, he adds the vehicles used are not roadworthy and can be hazardous to both the drivers and members of the public.
03:30 Prentice says numerous letters have been sent to the corporation, the mayor and government officials, but nothing has been done to rectify the problems.
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