Ross Sheil, Staff Reporter
NELSON
THE BUSTAMANTE Industrial Trade Union (BITU) has pulled out of the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Government, and is asking member unions of the Jamaica Confederation of Trade Unions (JCTU) to do the same.
"We are now calling upon Government to enter into immediate negotiations with all entities in the public sector to provide increases in salaries and fringe benefits to all workers in the public sector with immediate effect," Opposition Senator Dwight Nelson, BITU vice-president, told The Gleaner/Power 106 News Centre yesterday.
The BITU's decision to abandon the MoU follows the move by Air Jamaica's management to make redundant its remaining 180 pilots, following last month's redundancy of 40. Ongoing negotiations between the airline and the BITU-affiliated Jamaica Airline Pilots Association (JALPA) apparently broke down yesterday.
On the basis of an understanding, signed with government in February last year, public sector unions agreed to accept a three-per cent cap on wage increases over two financial years. Government in turn agreed to keep inflation at specific single digit rates. The agreement meant that some 15,000 persons, whose jobs were likely to be cut ahead of last year's budget exercise, were saved.
NO AGREEMENT REACHED
Senator Nelson , who is also president of the Jamaica Confederation of Trade Unions (JCTU), claimed Air Jamaica has made the redundancies even after reaching an agreement with the pilots. He added that Dr. Vin Lawrence, the executive chairman of the government-owned Air Jamaica, had broken the government's side of the MoU by making the redundancies.
According to Mr. Nelson, negotiations between JALPA and Air Jamaica had agreed upon reductions in salary scale, fringe benefits and an end to the pilots pension plan and medical scheme.
"All these benefits," Senator Nelson said, "would have been taken away from the pilots and we said to Air Jamaica: 'Since there is an understanding on these contractual items why don't you let us sign an agreement and then talk about the rest of the contract in so far as the procedural clauses are concerned?' Air Jamaica said 'no' and that was confirmed in a meeting with the minister yesterday (Sunday)."
During that meeting, Minister of Labour Horace Dalley, to whom the disputing parties had turned for conciliation talks, said he was advised by the Solicitor General that "a dispute does not now exist." Last night he said he was not yet aware of the decision taken by the BITU to break the MoU, but conceded that "it would have far-reaching implications."
In his budget presentation last week, Prime Minister P.J. Patterson praised the MoU for bringing "stability and predictability" in the relationship between government and the trade unions.
