President General of the Seamen and Waterfront Workers Trade Union Michael Annisette says the workers are entitled to the 12% wage increase promised to them by the government in 2015.
He believes under the former PNM administration; the state did not do right by workers.
00:00According to the trade union leader, the 12% is rightfully due to the employees at the Port of Port of Spain.
00:08He explains that the Port Authority does not rely on government to pay wages and salaries to employees.
00:15Michael Aniseth says it generates enough revenue to maintain that on its own.
00:20So the issue of paying the 12% was never an issue of the inability to pay because the government has no money.
00:30And if the government project that the past government, it was a misrepresentation of the facts.
00:36In 2024, former UNC Transport Minister Stephen Cadiz criticized the People's National Movement for refusing to follow through on the 12% increase for Port of Spain port workers.
00:49Aniseth believes the former government intentionally depressed the salaries of workers.
00:55The Prime Minister had what I will want to call irreversible arrogance.
01:02The issue of communicating with people, the question of civility, the question of humility,
01:10the question of trying to understand the ordinary citizens of Trinidad and Tobago.
01:16But more importantly, the government depressed wages for all public sector workers.
01:23Additionally, Aniseth addresses concerns over an alleged secret plot to privatize the port.
01:30He said he is not against it per se, but workers must benefit.
01:35I am saying I am not adverse to privatization, but I'm also saying that in any privatization,
01:43the workers must be involved and the workers must have a share of whatever is being privatized.
01:51We must own our resources too. It must not be to a certain group of people.
01:57Workers must be the center of any privatization.
02:02He adds that there must also be equal pay for equal work,
02:06noting that currently a gantry operator in Point Lisas receives a 34% higher wage than a gantry operator in Port of Spain.
02:15Aniseth, who is also the General Secretary of the Caribbean Congress of Labour, says
02:20that is not proper industrial relations.
02:23And according to Aniseth, that is what was allowed under the former government administration.
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