00:00Michael Anassat, President of the Seamen and Waterfront Workers Trade Union, spoke with
00:05TV6 after the meeting as weeks of action have resulted in delays at the port and a nightmare
00:12for businessmen.
00:13He's saying that port workers ought to be treated with dignity.
00:17This struggle is not only for 12 percent.
00:21This struggle is for a better port because the framework agreement that we signed with
00:27the PP partnership government speak to putting international best practices and it would
00:36have taken the port to a place which is required for the port to be competitive, sustainable
00:43and productive.
00:45Delays have become the order of the day at the Port of Spain port.
00:49Truck drivers report to TV6 they are strategically turned away on Mondays, Tuesdays and Fridays
00:56just so that the port will open on Saturday and workers could secure overtime.
01:02Some allege they are not being offloaded nor loaded for hours unless they quote unquote
01:08handle the foreman at the car park.
01:11One driver tells us today was one of those days when no staff turned up for duty at the
01:16Westgate and containers could not be loaded.
01:19In the meantime the SWWTU wants government to stop interfering in negotiations and abide
01:27by the agreement signed between the union and management in 2015.
01:32And I want the government to know and also the minister of works and transport that a
01:41state manual enterprise which is a policy decision is not legal.
01:47I want them to know that the inter-ministerial committee is not legal.
01:52How dare and how come that the government will want to interfere with negotiations when
01:58they are not the employer.
02:00Let me repeat it.
02:01The inter-ministerial committee or the line minister is not the employer.
02:08The employer is the port authority.
02:10The standoff began in August with periods of slowed down operations.
02:15The business community called for good sense to prevail saying the actions of port workers
02:20are affecting their most commercial time of the year.
02:24This struggle started in August of this year.
02:27So don't come and say we wait until Christmas to hold all it a ransom.
02:32If you all were serious in August this would have been settled and it is a simple way to
02:37settle this agreement, sign the framework agreement and implement it with all the measures
02:44or alternatively give dock workers in Port of Spain the same rates that is being paid
02:50to workers in Point Blisses and we will go back to work tomorrow.
02:54As it relates to the government seeking legal advice, the unionist reminds government it
02:59was the very legal advice that landed them losses against the former central bank governor
03:05and the auditor general.
03:07It is with the tax payers money that you have to take to pay out these matters in these
03:16matters and therefore don't come and tell Siemens union but you get advice and advice
03:22is just an advice and if you are so sure well let me test it now.
03:26Chambers of Commerce have come out asking government to do what has to be done to restore
03:32operations.
03:33Anas had questions if they actually believe the army can do their jobs.
03:38He calls on the public to stop demonising the workers and instead sympathise with their
03:42position.
03:43The SWWTU met with the Works and Transport Minister Rohan Sinhanan but there appeared
03:50to be no middle ground.
03:52Neither the union nor the minister was able to provide any context to the meeting.
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