Negotiations to begin for local Govt workers

The talks for the 2005-2007 agreement are between the Chief Personnel Officer (CPO) and the National Union of Government and Federated Workers (NUGFW) and cover all workers of the municipal bodies except those attached to the San Fernando City Corporation and the Port-of-Spain City Corporation.

Workers at these institutions are represented by two different unions.

The CPO-NUGFW talks will continue today and on succeeding Mondays.

NUGFW’s first vice-president, James Lambert who heads the union’s team told Newsday that although the talks have started in earnest, the accent at this stage is on non-cost items.

However, it was decided that a number of areas that were not finalised in the expired agreement are being given priority "just to get them out of the way."

They number about 12 and concern three groups of workers, mainly from Tobago and they have to do with reclassification.

The perennial problem of checkers not properly classified is also high on the agenda, explained Lambert. According to Lambert, the Minister of Public Administration, Lenny Saith who is privy to the problems has requested both the union and the CPO to have the matters resolved as quickly as possible. Lambert himself is seeking the full co-operation of the CPO, to have the checkers issue resolved once and for all.