Postal workers are adamant that instability in the postal sector will be increased if there is no positive feedback from the Chief Personnel Officer (CPO) Stephanie Lewis.
The workers are requesting an 18.5 per cent increase to their basic salary.
Scores of workers gathered outside the CPO’s office, St Vincent Street in Port-of-Spain around 9 am yesterda, chanting and voicing their dissatisfaction by what they claim was the CPO’s refusal to consider a report which recommended salary increases.
General secretary of the Postal Workers Union Reginald Crichlow said for far too long workers have been neglected and they were fed up with the situation.
Saying that more than 900 workers were affected Crichlow added that the management of TTPost brought in a consultant some two to three years ago after which a report was done which included recommendations for salary increases for various positions.
Accusing the CPO of sitting on the report Crichlow said, “After all this time the CPO would now say there are concerns in the report and as such it cannot be adopted. Who is the CPO to say it cannot be adopted?
“When the CPO had the report some two or three years ago she did nothing, not even evaluate it but suddenly she is finding flaws. The best thing to do is call in the people who conducted the report,” Crichlow said.
Saying for far too long postal workers were being treated like slaves Crichlow said they also had to face harsh elements such as hot son and pouring rain to get the job done.
“When we take whatever action people call us insensitive. We hear that but who are hearing us? If they don’t understand it then so be it but we are prepared to take a bad name because is nobody is hearing us. We are fighting to make a dollar and nobody is looking to highlight our plight or even motivate the workers by paying us a proper salary. We are not asking for anything that is unjust. Are we still slaves?” Crichlow asked.
He also expressed concern that there has been no intervention from either the finance ministry or the ministry of public utilities.
Describing the situation as a stalemate Crichlow added, “We will continue to highlighting our plight and our action is not going to cease.
“We cannot guarantee anything because at the end of the day there is nothing to motivate us,” Crichlow said.
The last salary increase they received was for the 2008-2010 period. When workers protested in June this year, hundreds of people throughout the country people could not collect their State grants.
The line minister for TTPost, Minister of Public Utilities Nizam Baksh, said he was aware of the issue, but it was up to the Ministry of Finance to settle on negotiations.