[UPDATED] Despite planned protest, CPO to meet with unions on wage negotiation

A week after offering two cents increase on the dollar for an eight year period, the Chief Personnel Officer, Dr Daryl Dindial says negotiations are still ongoing.

In a media release on Wednesday, Dindial reminded labour unions that “negotiations remain an ongoing process.”

The media release comes two days after unions planned to take to the streets on Friday. Unions promised to teach the government a lesson for what they described as total disrespect for the working class. Union heads called on their base to show up at Memorial Park, Port of Spain for a march through the city ending at the Brian Lara Promenade.

National Union of Government and Federated Workers (NUGFW) called on government workers to stay away from work and come out in a mass protest through Port of Spain. At an emergency press conference last Friday NUGFW president-general James Lambert said over 20,000 workers are expected to gather in the capital against the proposal.

The day of the planned march is also the deadline date for unions to respond according to the CPO’s media release.

This threat of a massive protest came one day after the Prime Minister called on workers to keep calm. On his return to the country from Guyana on Sunday, Dr Rowley called on unions to have patience.

"Clearly what has been offered has offended some people…We have a little bit more now and therefore a little bit more can provide a little bit more. Reason is required and patience is an essential ingredient.”

"I think you would want us to continue keeping people in jobs, you would want us to continue looking for opportunity for us to have an improved payment, but let's not get too carried away with this."

The two percent increase covers the years 2014-2021 which will be for two negotiating periods 2014-2018 and 2019-2021. Each period the offer is one per cent. The minimum negotiating period is three years while five years is the maximum. Unions historically have negotiated on a three year period.

Dindial’s first meeting will be with the Police Service Social Welfare Association on June 10. Three days later, Dindial will meet with the Fire Services Association. The third meeting will be on June 15 with NUGFW who represents daily paid workers.

Two days later, Dindial will meet with the Trinidad and Tobago Unified Teachers’ Association (TTUTA) then with the largest union body in the country the Public Services Association (PSA) on June 21. On June 24 his last meeting will be with the Prison Officers Association.

On Tuesday Finance Minister Colm Imbert tweeted that it cost $19 billion annually to pay wages for the public sector, including statutory bodies and state enterprises. He said that is 40 per cent of the countries revenue. The tweet is part of the government's constant reminder that it is unable to afford more without incurring further debt.

At a national PNM meeting at the Calvary Community Centre in Arima on Tuesday Rowley said if the CPO’s offer were to double then the government will have to borrow just to pay backpay.

"For a total of four per cent, that will cost a backpay of $1.45 billion. If that’s all you do, and of course an additional $730 million a year, because once you change the pay, there’s a permanent increase going forward.”

Newsday contacted the union heads, all except the police said they rejected the offer. Police association president Inspector Gideon Dickson said he will meet with his membership to get feedback on the proposal.

Apart from the two per cent offer, the CPO also offered new allowances. Dickson said these included special allowances for emergency medical technicians (EMT) and community police.

The fire service was also offered an EMT allowance along with an allowance for the land and rescue unit. President of the association Leo Ramkissoon said while that may be good in theory, it is a far cry from the 15 per cent they proposed in 2018 for the period 2014-2016.

He added that there is nothing to negotiated beyond that period until 2014-2016 is settled. Ramkissoon said that 15 per cent was derived after looking at the market of those in a similar field.

“The position that is proffered of two per cent is grossly reckless to take that position or it is an act of war and a slap in the face” Ramkissoon said adding that it amounts to a cut in salary given inflation.

TTUTA’s first vice-president Marlon Seales said while TTUTA does not negotiate on percentage increases rather market surveys. He said a market survey is expected to be completed by the end of this week and that will determine an acceptable increase for teachers. He pointed out though that this style saw teachers receiving the lower end of the market value.

PSA president Leroy Baptiste when contacted said he was in a meeting and could not respond at the time.

Lambert said unlike police and fire, daily paid workers were not offered any new allowances. He said the point of both the PM and the Finance Minister highlighting that the country is in a financial bind was to convince the population that the unions are being unreasonable.

“He (the PM) is trying to make the residents of Trinidad and Tobago to believe how unreasonable the trade unions are and we aware of the economic situation of the country but we trying to bring stress to the government.”

He said for the past seven years under Rowley he has offered nothing compared to the nine per cent they received under the People’s Partnership and considered that to be unreasonable. He added that pennies are always counted when it is time to pay workers but when millions are wasted on state contracts there is no accounting.

On Sunday Imbert tweeted that the proposed increase will cost $350 million in backpay and an additional $300 million in annual recurring expenditure for public servants. A day later he tweeted that a five percent wage increase from 2015 to 2020, for all affected negotiations will cost $9.15 billion in backpay and an increased recurring expense of $2,2 billion.

Last week Imbert during the debate on the Variation of Appropriation (Financial Year 2022) Bill, 2022, said the country achieved a surplus of $1.98 billion at the end of April. He said one of the things the government would do with the increased revenue was pay increased wages to public servants.

Lambert said “When they raise their pension in 2019 did he come to the nation and say what the cost will be? The answer is no!”

Asked if the country should borrow money to facilitate the increases, Lambert said he is unsure if that is needed given what Imbert told Parliament last week.

President of the prisons association Ceron Richards said he met with his members on Tuesday and they have rejected the offer of two per cent wage increase. Richards said there are new allowances on the table but did not want to highlight what they are.

“The membership said that is not a counter offer. That is disrespect in writing. One of the things that the membership would have said to us is that they never instructed us to submit any proposal for an eight year period. The proposal was from 2014-2016. ”

Like TTUTA and fire service, Richards said he would have proposed a 20 to 22 per cent increase based on the market survey. He added that it is “outrageous” to accept anything less than market value especially given that the period the association is asking for begins at 2014-2016.

This story has been updated to include additional details. Read original below:

A week after offering public servants a two per cent increase in wages for an eight-year period, the Chief Personnel Officer (CPO) Dr Daryl Dindial, in a media release on Wednesday, said negotiations are expected to continue next month.

The offer to is for the years 2014-2021, with no increases for the first three years and a one per cent increase in 2018 and 2021.

The CPO said he will first meet with the police association on June 10, then the fire association three days later. Daily-rated unions will meet Dindial on June15 followed by the Trinidad and Tobago Unified Teachers’ Association (TTUTA) on June 21.

The penultimate group will be the largest union body in the country, the Public Services Association (PSA) on June 21 and lastly on June 24 the Prison Officers Association,

The unions are expected to respond in writing by Friday to the two per cent proposal, along with allowances which include: house, meals, travelling, uniforms, clothing, laundry, duty, motor vehicle tax exemption.

The release said several new allowances have been introduced.

Dindial said negotiations remain an ongoing process.