Teaching staff at the University of the West Indies St. Augustine Campus have threatened a shutdown of operations on Friday. It stems from wage negotiations which have been unsettled for many years.
UWI's management says its hands are tied and it is concerned about the impact the impasse can have on the Campus in the short and long-term. It is calling for a resolution.
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00:23Teaching staff at the University of the West Indies St. Augustine campus have
00:27threatened a shutdown of operations on Friday. It stems from wage negotiations
00:32which have been unsettled for many years. UWE's management says its hands are
00:37tied and it is concerned about the impact the impasse can have on the
00:41campus in the short and long term. It is calling for a resolution.
00:44Alyssa Boucher has the details. The frustration of UWE St. Augustine campus
00:54workers represented by the West Indies group of university teachers expressed
00:58in protest on Thursday as they took their concerns to Principal Professor
01:03Rosemary Bell Antwine's office. They're working on 2014 salaries and the chief
01:17personnel officer's offer of 2% for the period 2015 to 2017 has been
01:24outrightly rejected. As she has previously done, Principal Bell Antwine
01:29came to address the workers and President of WGAT Dr. Indira Rampersad
01:33signaled the plan for Friday.
01:54As for what the blackout will mean for the campus?
02:24Principal Antwine says UWE's management empathizes with its staff
02:37citing the prolonged issue amid the rising cost of living.
02:54UWE St. Augustine relies on the government for the paying of salaries.
03:15The principal states that despite positive assurances in the national
03:19budget, meetings and follow-ups for the past two years, nothing concrete has
03:24materialized and concerns are now exacerbated as yet another teaching term
03:29comes to an end.
03:40We remain, however, steadfast in our commitment to dialogue with the government of Trinidad and Tobago to resolve this impasse. We therefore urge all parties to move this process forward productively and swiftly, ensuring a resolution that benefits not only our staff but also the students who depend on the stability and excellence of the UWE experience.
03:58But in the long term, Professor Antwine believes that a wage problem has the potential to destroy the university, citing a library post which has been advertised but remains vacant three years later.
04:11Sometimes five posts we offer, we can't get a single person, not to mention persons leaving. We are at a crossroads. I really do believe that. And if we are not careful with how we move forward, we will lose. And if we don't lose it as an institution, we will certainly lose the quality.
04:30A suggestion has been made by WIGA to invite Finance Minister Coleman Burr to the campus to advance the wage discussions. Professor Antwine says she's open to it. Alicia Boucher, TV6 News.
04:44The TV6 People Meter, brought to you by XL Health TT, the official supplements of the CPS.
04:53Tonight we're asking you, lecturers seeking a pay increase threaten to shut down the UWE St Augustine campus. Do you think they will be taken seriously by the government? To vote, text yes or no to the number 7664886 or 7664TV6. We'll have the results for you at the end of this newscast.
05:12The public conversation on the 120th report of the Salaries Review Commission continues with the significant wage increases proposed for parliamentarians causing some of the most contention. Political scientist Dr Indira Rampersad is weighing in. She points to a problem of inequity when it comes to wages in the country.
05:38My thoughts on the SRC report, I agree that workers, good workers deserve a good pay. I believe that you have to work for your pay. I think you have to deserve your pay. But what I would want to say is that you can't throw 70% at one politician and 2% at a worker. So it's like all animals are equal but some are not equal than others.
05:59I also do not believe that some are elitist and others are not. Because in terms of value, in terms of qualification and experience, our university lecturers are amongst the most qualified in the region. And there's no comparison to many government ministers.
06:18Dr Rampersad notes that the process the SRC undertook is different from the collective bargaining by trade unions. And she is in support of increases for at least one group mentioned in the report.
06:30But it's very peculiar that the report would come back, if you want my comment. It's very peculiar, and I've said this before, that the report would come back with more for some of the politicians. I was happy to see that the judges got an increase because many of them deserve one.
06:45Principal of the University of the West Indies St. Augustine campus, Professor Rosemary Bell-Antoine, isn't making public her thoughts on the proposals outlined in the 120th report of the Salaries Review Commission. But she highlights an overarching problem.
07:02I don't have a comment on that except to say I do believe in the principle of equity across the board, not just in salaries. I think in the region, in Trinidad and Tobago, there is an issue with equity in terms of salary, and not just in the public sector, also in the private sector, this corporate world we live in.
07:19And I do hope that Trinidad and Tobago can come to a place where there is more equity. And as I said, all workers, including politicians, by the way, all workers deserve fair wages.
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