Yesterday we told you about the Christian Worker's Union's letter to the Port of Belize announcing a 21 day notice of intended strike action. According to the CWU, they met with the Port 9 days ago, and gave them one week to schedule a date for them to resume negotiations. And, after no date was decided upon when that period elapsed, the CWU gave notice, and the Port Management quickly set a date for a meeting. The executives from both parties met today to hash out a plan going forward. We spoke to Port President, Tux Vasquez, this evening about the negotiations so far...
Arturo Vasquez, President - Port of Belize
"After we got that letter yesterday, we had since yesterday we also notified the CWU of a start date for us to resume negotiations and I believe that is all they needed to pull the 21-day notice letter. But when that 21-day notice letter goes out, because you know that the stevedores are an essential service, it's something that they are required to do. That notice then is really for the minister to take action and what the minister did today was brought us together with the labour commissioner to discuss the way forward and we had a pretty good meeting between the union and ourselves and we have decided that we will start our first negotiation meeting. I had suggested tomorrow, but the union can't make it tomorrow, so we put it to Tuesday of next week. So with that now in place, that 21-day notice is now gone."
Alex Courtenay, 7News
"We understand that through the press release they mentioned that you guys were in negotiations at least a week ago. Have they properly indicated what the reason for their strike would be?"
Arturo Vasquez, President - Port of Belize
"Well the 21-day notice is because they believe that the port has been delaying negotiations of the CBA. Its 15 months since we have met with that negotiations, but as you know the leadership of the union has change again and in the meeting we had with the commissioner today, I pointed out to them that it is not the port that has been holding up this negotiation for the last 15 months. It's actually the CWU who did not come back to the table. But that's with the past executive. We are dealing with a new president now. But all of that was discuss today and that's one of the reasons why the letter was also pulled and we decided there is no need for that. Let's just move ahead, let's just try to go to our first meeting."
Police were in the area today because firebrand stevedore Raymond "Dinget" Rivers has reportedly been suspended from working the sugar boats. This is after a gang of stevedores went on an unofficial go-slow yesterday on the sugar boats - complaining about the terms of their agreement.
Email
Print