Union wants labour minister’s intervention in airport sacking

The labour minister may have to intervene in a situation between the Waterfront and Allied Workers Union (WAWU) and Leeward Islands Air Transport (LIAT).

Both parties met to discuss a matter involving the sacking of one employee based at the Melville Hall Airport who WAWU said was terminated unethically and unconstitutionally.

General Secretary of WAWU Kertiste Augustus reported Monday, that the matter was unresolved and the labour minister would now have to intervene for the setting up of a tribunal.

“We were not able to get the matter resolved. LIAT was represented by its human resource director and we discussed the manner in which the termination took place. We showed a level of inconsistency and we discussed it in some detail. The Union indicated that we will have to take this matter to the next level which will involve the minister of labour, calling upon him to setting up a tribunal to hopefully determine and resolve the matter,” he said.

He said it is the final position of the Union.

“We are not happy with the way LIAT has approached the whole thing,” he concluded.

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6 Comments

  1. The Truth
    January 10, 2012

    Thats really amazing, thats a great way for the union to cummunicate with its members, through the media, i overheard the staff at the airport saying that they fedup of getting to know things about themself on the news and thats not right,thats a disrespect on the Union part, people that pay union dues should not be treated that way, you first have to consult the staff about their affairs befor runing to the media,

  2. Letmetellyou!
    January 10, 2012

    BS. Unions are good but sometimes very impossible. They have to cut staff, they have to cut staff!!!!! Are you going to force them to do what they can no longer afford?

    • January 10, 2012

      there is a way in doing everything. and is’t simple, PAY THE WORKER OFF for the years he or she has work

  3. Rabbit Ears
    January 10, 2012

    I don’t know under what circumstances the person lost their job, but to insist the minister gets involved in resolving that issue is asking for a bit much. Surely there ought to be mechanisms in place to deal with these issues without getting such high level involvement.

    • DA_UNDERCOVER
      January 10, 2012

      Did you read the entire article?? The involvement of the Minister would be to set up a TRIBUNAL on the request of the union. That’s just due process under labor laws.

      If there is a dispute between employer and employee(union), a labor tribunal may be set up by the Minister of Labor on the request of any of the parties involved to settle that dispute. The decision of the tribunal is legally binding on both parties.

      • Rabbit Ears
        January 11, 2012

        So one person gets fired and the whole world has to stop? People get fired every day. They have a collective agreement that the employer is duty-bound to follow. Failing that, there are mechanisms in place to deal with it, including the courts.

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