PANCHO
RACEHORSE GROOMS at Caymanas Park took strike action yesterday to back demands for a pay hike and the fate of tomorrow's big Digicel Derby meet hangs in the balance.
Over 300 members of the Paul Pancho-led Grooms' Association of Jamaica stopped working yesterday morning following a breakdown of their wage negotiations with the Jamaica Racehorse Trainers' Association for which Vin Edwards is president.
With Pancho at the forefront, placard-bearing grooms staged a demonstration at the Meadowvale gate at Caymanas Park to air their greviances.
A meeting between the chairman of the Jamaica Racing Commission, Rudolph Muir, along with Pancho and representatives of the Trainers' Association on Wednesday failed to stave off industrial action by the grooms.
However, another meeting is scheduled for this morning between representatives of Caymanas Track Limited (CTL), grooms and trainers to diffuse the situation.
The grooms are seeking a 60 per cent pay increase, but Edwards is insisting that the trainers can only afford to pay 20 per cent.
This was again rejected by the grooms, hence the stand off.
