Members of the Public Servants Association (PSA) on Friday called on their president Leroy Baptiste to accept the Government's offer of four per cent for two three-year periods to avoid being forced to accept the same amount for two five-year periods.
Oral Saunders, Jude Davidson and Jennifer Frederick held a meeting with a handful of PSA members outside the Abercromby Street head office. The three explained that the decision to reject the four per cent offer would eventually hurt the public servants more.
One member, Laura Benjamin, said she was living on a 2013 salary in 2023 and the ongoing litigation by the PSA executive, challenging the tribunal's power to deliberate over two five-year periods, rather than the two three-year periods, was a waste of time and money.
The first union to accept the offer was the Amalgamated Workers' Union, which agreed to the proposal on August 29 last year.
Four unions, TTUTA, Fire Officers Association, POA and PSA were referred to a special tribunal of the Industrial Court after negotiations broke down. In November 2022, the Defence Force became the first sector of the protective services to accept the offer. It was followed by the police service in December last year.
In May, the Trinidad and Tobago Unified Teachers' Association (TTUTA) and the Prison Officers Association (POA) also accepted the offer.
A month later, the Fire Service Associations (first and second divisions) accepted the government's four per cent salary offer and withdrew from the special tribunal of the Industrial Court.
The accepted offer by the unions are for the years 2014 to 2019, with the breakdown of two per cent for 2016, nothing for 2017-2018 and another two per cent for 2019.
The unions said accepting the four per cent gave them the ability to further negotiate for the period 2020 to 2022. The tribunal's offer of two-five year periods would end in 2023, with the same four per cent increase.
Saunders said the decision to file for judicial review challenging the tribunal's position was not wise as the court matter would prolong deliberations. He added that while Baptiste was challenging that, all other negotiations must cease.
Saunders and Frederick argued that court matters usually took several years to be completed and their understanding was that Baptiste was willing to go all the way to the Privy Council. If so, they estimated public servants could wait another five years before negotiations were settled.
Citing the decision by the Industrial Court, Benjamin said the 2022 decision of no increase for 2015 to 2017 for Trinidad and Tobago Electricity Commission (T&TEC) was a precedent.
She urged those gathered to rally their support to encourage the membership to accept the four per cent now and live to fight another day.
On February 18 last year, a three-member team comprising Lawrence Achong, chairman of the essential services division and members Vincent Cabrera and Michelle Austin ruled that it was too expensive for the government to pay T&TEC workers a
