T&T: UWI staff warn of intensified industrial action

CMC – Industrial action taken by staff at the St. Augustine Campus of the University of the West Indies (UWI) over lack of pay increases is set to intensify, the West Indies Group of University Teachers (WIGUT) has warned.

Dozens of placard-carrying employees who are upset at not having received a pay raise since 2014 protested at the campus on Thursday, chanting “nine years we are waiting, we not getting anything”.

And according to WIGUT president Dr Indira Rampersad, they will amp up their action in the weeks to come by restricting their work to only teaching classes.

“They will not upload course marks…..They’re not doing office hours. They’re not meeting with students. Question papers have to be submitted in March for the April exams and the final exams are between April and May with final marks due by the end of May. So, if we don’t hear anything in March, then we’re not sure if those exams are going to take place,” she warned as she spoke to the Guardian newspaper during the demonstration.

Dr. Rampersad said there had been several attempts to start the pay negotiation process for the St. Augustine staff but a wage increase offer has not been made, while employees at other UWI campuses have received their due.

“Both Jamaica and Barbados – Cave Hill and Mona campuses – actually enjoy higher salaries than St Augustine, and Jamaica has settled up to 2021,” she said.

In a statement issued on Thursday, management of the UWI sought to assure that efforts were being made to get their increases.

“Salary negotiations for all staff, that is, Daily and Weekly Rated Workers, Monthly paid Administrative Technical and Service Staff (ATSS), Estate Police Persons, and Academic, Senior Administrative and Professional staff (ASAP) of the campus are ongoing with the Government of the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago via the Chief Personnel Officer (CPO),” it said.

“Campus management has shared with all staff that it is awaiting word on the remits to enable the process to go forward and notes that there have been ongoing discussions with the CPO to secure these remits. Management will continue to engage with unions and provide updates to staff as they become available.”

The UWI management added that it “understands the anxiety surrounding the need for the settlement of these negotiations” and said it hoped that the process can proceed in a productive manner and arrive at a speedy conclusion.

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