CWU’s Remy says, ‘let good sense prevail’

Speaking with reporters at a press-briefing at the TDC office, Maritime Plaza, yesterday, Remy said the CWU would observe developments closely to ensure all parties uphold their end of the bargain from a recommendation made by the Industrial Court, and called on Minister of Tourism Shamfa Cudjoe to honour her promise and ensure that workers are given appropriate consideration during the formation of the regulatory authority that will be replacing the TDC.

“We are calling on the Government to dig below the surface and let good sense prevail in this situation to ensure that we do not see the end of the tourism sector in Trinidad and Tobago,” he said.

“A letter again went out to the ministers today calling for an urgent meeting particularly in the face of correspondence that we have seen that there is a new company that they are going to form and the minister must hold fast to her commitment on communications that she had with me that they are going to give the TDC employees the opportunity to work in the new company.” Remy added that despite reassurances from TDC chairman Jerry Hospedales promising severance packages, no such discussions have been held with the CWU, and warned government that the company’s dissolution could create more harm than good for the tourism sector in TT, citing additional operating costs and a loss of skilled labour that would arise from the shift.

“We keep hearing them talking about packages. Up to now the CWU has not received any official communications from the TDC, nor the government, nor the board, about any terms and conditions that they wish to propose relative to what they want to do going into the future.

“In the face of that you want to take all the professional people in the tourism industry and put them into oblivion. We are also going to have an increase in operational costs, a problem in connectivity between these three disparate units that will work against the best interests of the government.” In March, Tourism Minister said that the TDC would be dissolved and replaced by two separate regulatory entities that will be charged with managing activities related to developing tourism over Trinidad and Tobago respectively. The move was met by resistance by members of the CWU, who have since called on Cabinet to reverse the decision.