The TT Airline Pilots Association (TTALPA) has said its signing of the 2015-2020 collective agreement with Caribbean Airlines’ (CAL) has been derailed.
It was scheduled to take place on December 6 but did not happen.
TTALPA is once again calling on Finance Minister Colm Imbert and CAL shareholders to intervene.
At a media conference at the Queen's Park Oval’s Charlie Davis Lounge on December 9, the pilots, along with their industrial relations consultant, Timothy Bailey, said they were deeply disappointed by the latest development.
Bailey said the company would be allowed, via the board, to carry out its ethical duty and allow for good industrial-relations common sense to prevail.
“Our intention is not to be reactive and to take action at every instance. Our intention is to ventilate the issue and allow the right thing to be done.”
In August last year, the pilots took sick-out action which left thousands of passengers stranded.
The association also criticised CAL’s launch of a J’Ouvert band and rum punch.
“TTALPA sees this latest action by the board as an attempt to hold the pilots and a collective bargaining process which has been approved by the shareholder hostage.”
In October, Imbert was called to intervene in the negotiations. He eventually did so and approved a four per cent salary increase after peaceful picketing by the pilots.
There were subsequent meetings on November 12 and 27 at which the parties discussed the omission of articles previously agreed on. The articles discussed were article 18, related to promotions and article 23, a memorandum of agreement dated July 14, 2011.
Bailey said the latter article was part of the current collective agreement.
“So to say you don’t understand the terms of the collective agreement says a lot,” he added.
Bailey said it was not a US (currency) issue and it was strictly an issue of
an entity dealing in bad faith which had made an agreement but was now trying to reverse it.
The association said at the November 27 meeting CAL apologised after the association reminded the airline that to try to exclude the articles would be considered negotiating in bad faith.
“CAL promptly apologised and stated this was done in error. CAL then proposed to amend their draft and reinsert the omitted articles,” the association said.
TTALPA said the parties agreed to schedule the official signing of the collective agreement on December 6 and CAL even indicated its intention to pay the pilots before Christmas.
However, this did not happen and in a letter on December 5, the CAL board told the association it had reversed its position.
The association said it proposed a meeting with the board and its negotiating team on December 6 but the board declined, saying the notice was too short.
Bailey said pilots were currently low-spirited.
“They give their all. They take a million-dollar, multi-million-dollar piece of equipment, they carry people from one destination to another, safely, in comfort, through the night when we are sleeping.
“And they are pa
