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  • 1 year ago

An attempt today by trade unions to deliver a letter to the Prime Minister failed, after security at the Diplomatic Centre refused to accept the envelope. Trade union leaders and hundreds of members had earlier launched protest action outside the Prime Minister's office, calling for better treatment of the working class. Rynessa Cutting has more.

Transcript
00:00We have this to deliver and that will now bring to an end our mission today.
00:07Peace will be the delivery of that, will we not?
00:10Respectfully, sir, I think your mission may have been fulfilled.
00:14We are at rest.
00:16Even after we, the Prime Minister, saw the public before you.
00:19After walking from Whitehall to the Prime Minister's residence,
00:23trade union members were unable to deliver their letter to Dr Rowley as intended
00:28and instead opted to leave the envelope stuck in his gate.
00:50Hundreds of trade union members and their leaders
00:53had earlier gathered outside the Prime Minister's office
00:56in protest of this government's treatment of workers.
01:00The CPO's position, the CPO's disrespectful position, is Rowley's position.
01:08In both positions, the leprechaun position is Rowley's position.
01:15Everything that goes on in the government, Rowley sanctions it.
01:22So if you are to blame anybody, blame Rowley.
01:26At the root of the trade union's contention with the government
01:29is government's policy with respect to wage negotiations.
01:34We say to them, if you want to make the four attractive for the trade unions,
01:40just as the SRC would have done, put us several, put us several.
01:48After the four, and a point five, don't forget the point five, and a point five,
01:53and offer all of us a 47.5% increase.
01:57On Friday, the Chief Personal Officer sought to make it clear
02:01that the increase in the Prime Minister's salary is actually closer to 25%
02:07and not 47%, as is being reported.
02:11The CPO, who is the secretary to the Salary Review Commission,
02:18oversaw the increase of his own salary by 30%.
02:24Having performed this self-serving task, he is now attempting to bully the unions
02:31to accept a paltry 2% for two, three-year periods of collective bargaining,
02:36that's six years, without the consolidation of cost of living allowance.
02:41Roger would like all workers to ponder on this message.
02:46If for one month the government does not work, or continues to not work,
02:54the country will run. The country will run smoothly.
02:59But if for that one month, or even one day, workers throughout this country don't work,
03:07this country will come to a screeching halt.
03:10Representatives of a few political parties were also present at the protests,
03:15including Gary Griffith, political leader of the NTA,
03:19UNC MPs Rushton Parry and Dinesh Rambli,
03:22and the political leader and deputy political leader of the Hope Party,
03:27Timothy Arnold-Smith and Karen Nunez-Teixeira.
03:31Renessa Cutting, TV6 News.
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