THE Port of Port of Spain continues to experience disruptions.
The Port Authority of Trinidad and Tobago (PATT) confirmed in a news release yesterday that there was no load and discharge in the areas of Vessel Operations, and no receipt and delivery of full containers at the West Gate.
PATT, however, confirmed that the areas operational were receipt and delivery of empty containers only at the West Gate; the One Stop Barrel Shop at Shed 10; delivery of commercial and LCL (less that container load) Cargo at Shed 4; and delivery of automobiles at Spectrum.
Seamen and Waterfront Workers Trade Union (SWWTU) president Michael Annisette told the Express via telephone yesterday that he was aware of the situation occurring at the port as members of the union had visited his office to air their grievance.
He said: “There continues to be a serious disaffection and a serious loss of confidence and a serious depression in respect to dock workers as it relates to the continued refusal of the government to implement a decision which was done in the correct way where the union is concerned.”
Annisette said the union went through the required channels to settle on the agreement which was made by then-Minister of Works and Transport Stephen Cadiz under the People’s Partnership government in 2015, to give port workers a 12% salary increase for the bargaining period 2014 to 2017.
“We had a town hall meeting with the workers to bring them up to date on the outcome of the negotiations – what are the implications, what will be required, what is expected of the workers in this new dispensation – as we move forward to make the port competitive. The fact then that we had meetings with equipment operators who are critical to the question of productivity. All these, when you put that together demonstrate that it was an agreement that the then-government supported and the then-government was a part of.”
He added: “The issue of whether they went through the CPO (Chief Personnel Officer), that is not our business.
“I think that it is rather unfortunate that the government of the present day will try to use technicalities to deny dock workers their just due, one, and the fact that we are competing with another port (Point Lisas) and that other port has the similar equipment to port workers which is ship to shore gantries, cranes, you have big lifts, and all these workers are receiving a higher salary than the Port of Port of Spain workers. It’s rather unfortunate.
“In the interest of not politics but commercial good sense and common sense, given what the port is to the economy, that the Minister of Finance and the Government and the Minister of Works and Transport should buckle down and don’t allow egos to get in the way and let us implement the agreement and start to put the measures and the best practices in place, which is urgently required on a commercial business in the best interest of the port and Trinidad and Tobago.”
The National Trade Union Centre (Natuc) also expressed solidarity with the SWWTU and called on the finance minister to honour the 12% wage increase for the 2014-2017 collective bargaining period and promptly implement the framework agreement’s best practices, essential for operations at the Port of Port of Spain.
In a news release yesterday, Natuc urged the business community to set aside self-interest and support the SWWTU by advocating for an end to the impasse at the Port of Port of Spain through the framework’s implementation.
It also sought to reassure the business community and the public that SWWTU was ready to work with PATT to implement those best practices in the interests of PATT, other stakeholders and the people of Trinidad and Tobago.
Negative impact
Businessmen, through a Joint Chambers news release, stated that the port’s shut-downs were having a negative impact on their business and called on the government to urgently take whatever action necessary to immediately resolve the ongoing industrial action causing chaos at the Port of Port of Spain.
The Chambers stressed that the lack of affirmative action on this matter was leading to a national crisis as the year is nearing its end and this is the time of the year when the volume of shipments is typically at its highest.
It said that owing to this fact, it is imperative that the port operates efficiently.
The Chambers explained that the extensive delays at the port are negatively affecting port revenue; Vessel By Passes; increased detention fees and haulage rates; delivery of raw materials for production; and the cost of production and of finished goods.
It also warned that the citizens of Trinidad and Tobago will be severely affected by the failure to arrive at a timely resolution on the matter.
The Chambers also said that it had observed a trend of industrial action leading to port disruption on Wednesdays, which is the day immediately prior to re-stocking at the Port, which occurs on Thursdays and Fridays.
They further stated that this has the effect of exacerbating an already unsustainable situation that is crippling businesses of all sizes and delaying delivery of Christmas inventory.
The business community added that they were already operating under significant economic constraints especially with limited access to foreign exchange and stated that it was imperative that the national supply chain not be further compromised.
According to the Chambers, “This inhibits our productive capacity and ultimately deters our ability to generate export revenue and impact the livelihoods of employees and their families.”