Roget: Election a victory for labour movement

AFTER a contentious decade under the Dr Keith Rowley administration, described by some labour leaders as the most anti-worker, the election of two labour representatives into the Kamla Persad-Bissessar-led government, is being seen as a beacon of hope by the trade union movement.

Former president of the Public Services Association (PSA) Leroy Baptiste was also sworn in as Labour Minister on May 3, making him the second leader of a trade union under a UNC led Government to hold this position.

Errol Mc Leod, former president general of the Oilfield Workers Trade Union (OWTU), was the first. He served in the People’s Partnership 2010 to 2015 government. His predecessor, George Weekes, would have served as a senator with the United Labour Front.

“I think this is an opportunity for us to advance the workers agenda,” current OWTU’s president general Ancel Roget told Newsday during May Day celebrations in San Fernando, on May 1.

“We represent the interest of the working class, the unemployed man on the street, those without a voice. There was an opportunity to sit at the table and advance that interest and we grabbed the opportunity.”

Sticking to its mantra that to effect change one must hold political power, Roget as leader of the Joint Trade Union Movement (JTUM) said the election result was the culmination of an arrangement with the UNC which started two years ago to form a coalition of interests (COI).

This COI, he said, was to advance the workers agenda and remove the PNM from office.

“We took a position last Labour Day (2024). Two years ago, (2023) on Labour Day we moved a no-confidence motion in the PNM and all that would have led to a build-up of what occurred now.

“We consistently campaigned against the tyranny and efforts to decimate the trade union. They had to be stopped and the only way to stop them was to vote them out of office.”

In this coalition, trade unionists Ernesto Kesar and Clyde Elder, of the OWTU and Communications Workers Trade Union, respectively, offered themselves for election under the UNC banner.

They contested the Point Fortin and La Brea seats which had not changed political affiliation from the PNM since 1986, with Persad-Bissessar promising the reopening of the Petrotrin refinery, wage negotiations starting at 10 per cent, the creation of jobs, and an increase in oil and gas production.

Their election, said David Abdulah, honourary member of the OWTU and leader of the Movement for Social Justice (MSJ), was significant and must be seen as a rebellion against Rowley and the PNM who accepted a 47 per cent salary increase, but gave public sector workers four per cent.

Roget said the policies of the last administration and the dictatorial personalities of its leaders, represented a diametrically opposed view to the interest they represented.

“Their trickle-down policy was designed to make the rich get richer and hoping that some of their crumbs would fall from their tables to the poor.

“We do not subscribe to those policies.”

Roget, recalling what he described as an attempt to decimate the movement, especially the OWTU, when the PNM government shut down the Petrotrin refinery and sent home all workers, said the labour movement had taken a beating.

“The country, workers, the trade union movement took a beating, but it is not dead.

“The trade union movement cannot die. It predated the PNM and will post date them. We were here long before they came, and we will be here long after they go.

“In fact, they have gone, Dr Rowley and the PNM was just booted out of office by the working class of this country.”

TIWU president: Not all union members happy with coalition

However, while some see labour's new alliance with government and the success of its representatives at the polls as a victory, many trade unionists are still harbouring resentment against JTUM for joining with a political party.

This thinking is not far removed from that of workers in the 1960’s who were opposed to OWTU’s third president gerneral George Weekes, joining with CLR James, Lennox Pierre, Stephen Maharaj and others to fight the 1966 elections on the Workers' and Farmers' Party ticket, although Weekes claimed the militant struggle was on the behalf of workers.

Transport and Industrial Workers Trade Union (TIWU) president general Sean Roberts, who attended the May Day rally, said that while he viewed the victory as hope for the future, some in his membership did not subscribe to that narrative.

He said that being part of a government that would enable the trade union to be part of policy-making decisions to benefit workers was a victory.

“In the past, we had no say in the legislative agenda, they tried to weaken the union and decrease our membership, but now that we have comrade Kesar and Elder in the government, they would represent us well.

“But we are getting some licks from some in the movement, even from my own members who believe we should not have gotten involved in the politics. I tell them that politics run things in this country.

“I know some comrades belong to other parties, so I don’t know if they don’t know or understand that we are doing this in their interest, in the interest of the workers. I think they believe we joined the wrong colour party.”

He explained that under the PNM administration, “MTS has not received any offer. The PTSC workers rejected the four per cent they were offered.”

“So, when a party says when they take office, we will start negotiations from 10 per cent up, I have no choice but to support that party, in the interest of workers.”

Under the PNM administration, former finance minister Colm Imbert insisted a four per cent wage offer to public sector workers for two collective periods was all government could offer without bankrupting the country.

At a “Spotlight on the Economy 2022,” meeting he said the figure represented TT$2.43 billion in back pay, while the additional annual recurring cost would be TT$419 million per year.

“And that’s just the mainstream public service; it doesn’t include statutory authorities and state enterprises,” he said at the time.

Most of the unions, including those representing teachers, firefighters, police, prison officers, members of the defence force, in addition to the Amalgamated Workers Union, All Trinidad Workers Union, Contractors and General Workers, accepted the offer. PSA is the only union that has not signed on to date.

After the UNC revealed its slate of candidates and Roget and PSA presidents past and present mounted its platform, several trade unions distanced themselves from the movement.

Roget said the OWTU had stood alone many times, but each time they were vindicated, present situation included.

The May Day rally, probably indicative of this lack of support, was less crowded that in previous years.

UWI lecturer, historian and Newsday’s columnist Dr Jerome Teelucksingh also recalled that prior to the election, some eight trade unions had publicly declared that they were not politically aligned.

He said that led to the conclusion that the trade union was not a united movement. He foresees some becoming enemies of the PSA and the OWTU and attacking the union element of the government.

Teelucksingh called for patience.

Abdulah: Labour movement must be united

Commenting on a suggestion that unions ought not to get involved in politics, Abdulah said the notion flew in the face of history.

He said his research about elections in TT dated back to 1925 when the very first election was held owing to the general strike by workers in 1920.

“Captain Cipriani and other representatives of the Trinidad Working Men’s Association were elected, albeit it was a limited franchise election.

“From then to now the labour movement has been central for workers democracy, because workers form the majority of the country.”

Abdulah used the occasion of May Day to call for solidarity and unity of the trade unions and the working class.

He said the UNC’s unprecedented history of winning 26 seats under its own banner was a major step, and presented an opportunity for labour reform and legislation.

Recognising there would be competing interests on a national level, he said it was more important for the movement to be united to ensure that the interest of workers and labour was fulfilled.

Postal Workers Union general secretary David Forbes applauded the strides made in the April 28 election and that finally those who support labour now hold the reins of power.

“This win represents a beacon of hope for the movement and working class.”

He said success did not come overnight, but after years of hard work.

He recalled that JTUM would have formulated a worker’s agenda that they presented to the Rowley government in 2015, but that administration failed to meet workers expectations.

He said they revisited that agenda and presented it to the UNC.

“Workers would have played a significant role in the results of the just-concluded election. It is now up to the new government of Prime Minister Kamla Persad-Bissessar to treat with the workers agenda.”

Nevertheless, Forbes said, “we want to make it absolutely clear that we are going to partner with the government throughout the process to ensure workers get their just dues.”

He said workers had been living on outdated 2013 and 14 salaries. He said his members had been waiting since 2011 for the implementation of a job-evaluation report.

“This is a working-class victory. It is a victory of the people of TT. There is hope.”

Prison Officers Association deputy research officer Olefemi Osouna agreed, seeing two trade unionists in the Parliament as a positive development for the government and labour, having signed on to be part of the COI.

His colleague, Marsha Wilkinson, said their support to government and JTUM was guaranteed and hoped the promises transformed into reality.

Fire Association president Keon Guy also pledged support and congratulated Kesar and Elder who attended the May Day celebration. Guy said their election demonstrated that labour was not dead.

Contractors and General Workers president Ermine De Bique also shared the view that, “two of us are now in a position to effect positive change for the working class.”