TALKS CONTINUE ON SALARIES

UP TO press time, Telecommunication Services of Trinidad and Tobago and the Communication Workers’ Union, were meeting at TSTT house in Port-of-Spain on important issues affecting both sides. Representatives were hammering out matters, aimed at arriving at a new collective agreement, on behalf of hundreds of junior staff workers of the telephone company. And while telephone workers protested with placards outside the TSTT building, TSTT issued a release stating that the two parties must report to the Industrial Court at 9 am today, “for mention and report on the status of the negotiations.” TSTT said although the matter is before the Court, it is still very much committed to making every effort to have an amicable settlement of the negotiations and to ensuring that service to customers is not unduly disrupted.

In its statement yesterday, TSTT said it was committed to the early resolution of negotiations with the union. According to the company, since negotiations resumed earlier this week, it improved its offer to employees with “settlement incentives” that will cost the company over $7.3 million, in addition to the $106.5 million in salary and allowances increase. TSTT said it made the offer in an attempt to expeditiously conclude negotiations with the CWU for the 2000-2002 collective agreement. Near press time, TSTT and the CWU negotiations which were resumed last Tuesday were yet to reach a compromise on the major cost items — salaries, profit sharing and allowances. TSTT said it was mindful of the fact that the resumption of negotiations had been accompanied by protest action led by the CWU.

Commenting on the new offer, Oliver Flax, TSTT’s executive vice-president (organisation effectiveness), said it enhanced the company’s initial proposal of a ten percent increase in salaries and allowances. According to Flax, TSTT’s proposals for the resolution of these negotiations were fair, just and equitable, having regard to prevailing market trends. Flax said: “After COLA is consolidated onto salaries as at December 31, 1999, all junior staff employees will in effect be receiving a real salary increase of greater than ten percent over the said period. On the issue of profit sharing,  Flax said TSTT was not mandated to make any offer and instead had proposed an objective-based incentive plan which would offer additional remuneration to employees, based on their performances and the performance of the company.