Unions deliver letter to Rowley

The three labour federations’ latest call to the PM came in the form of a letter which was hand delivered to the Office of the Prime Minister (OPM) in St Clair yesterday.

In the letter, the three federations described the situation in the country today as a “toxic societal cocktail”, especially with regards to the retrenchment of workers.

They lamented being unable to meet with Rowley, despite numerous attempts to do so. Rowley has urged the labour movement to return to the National Tripartite Advisory Council (NTAC) which was launched last year. Speaking outside the OPM after delivering the letter, Communication Workers Union (CWU) head Joseph Remy said, “The Prime Minister must be the one to repair the damage.” Remy reiterated the CWU’s concerns about who will benefit from the closure of the Tourism Development Corporation (TDC). He claimed the dismantling of the TDC, “is not because of any incompetence in the tourism sector.” Remy alleged the TDC’s closure is connected to the proposed Sandals resort in Tobago and,”who is going to benefit from that.” He also reiterated the union’s questions about TSTT’s acquisition of Massy Communications Ltd. Remy claimed this was the,”prelude for the Massy Group to turn around and take the cake in the telecommunications sector.” He added, “We are going to fight that right down the road because that is a dangerous thing.” JTUM leader Ancel Roget slammed Government’s handling of the Tobago seabridge fiasco. Roget said while different entities and individuals are contemplating what actions to take, Tobagonians in particular, “are suffering in silence.”