Associations representing prison and fire officers have warned that some of their members may take matters into their own hands to vent their continued dissatisfaction over the Government’s four per cent salary increase offer.
Prison Officers’ Association president Ceron Richards and Fire Service Association (Second Division) president Leo Ramkissoon revealed the potential action by their members during a press conference after a joint meeting at the Public Services Association (PSA) headquarters in Port-of-Spain yesterday.
Both Richards and Ramkissoon said their members considered the Government’s offer, for salary negotiations between 2014 and 2019, as a salary decrease based on the 22 per cent headline inflation during the negotiating period.
“We cannot guarantee what the outcome would be but it does not look good...prison officers have reached their breaking point,” Richards said.
“Things will not be normal in T&T...The Government is embarking on a journey to shut down T&T,” Richards added.
Richards claimed that his association has attempted to placate the disgruntled workers, while it continues to pursue collective bargaining with the Chief Personnel Officer (CPO) to no avail.
“Our greatest fears have become a reality. They are of the belief that the Government does not care,” Richards said.
While neither revealed what specific action would be taken by their membership, they both maintained that their announcement was an “empty threat” based on legal restrictions on industrial action that can be taken by members of the protective services.
“Because we are bounded by rules and regulations and a lot of restrictions based on the Industrial Relations Act, they believe they can push around, undermine, terrorise and impoverish persons who are considered essential to the functioning of T&T,” Richards said.
Richards denied that any possible action by members would be pre-planned by his organisation in association with trade unions in meetings such as the one yesterday.
“This is not a plan or strategy by the representative organisations. This is members simply telling us that they have reached their end,” Richards said.
Asked why the Police Social and Welfare Association was not part of the meeting, Richards and Ramkissoon noted that traditionally, the association for police officers does not publicly advocate for wage increases.
However, Ramkissoon said many police officers shared the same opinion on the Government’s offer, which he suggested would lead to abject hardship.
“I dare say it is all members of the protective services, even those without a voice at this time, are agitated and angry,” Ramkissoon said.
PSA president Leroy Baptiste, who facilitated the meeting, said some of his members were also frustrated by the Government’s “unacceptable” offer.
“We have to look at our next moves because our members have become seriously agitated. They all want us to do something to bring about fairness and justice,” Baptiste said.
Prime Minister Dr Keith Rowley has repeatedly defended the Government’s offer to public servants and members of the protective services.
Dr Rowley has claimed that the offer, which began at two per cent before being doubled, is all the Government can afford as, if accepted, it would cost the State over $2.5 billion in back pay up to June 2022.
