The firm stance by Prime Minister Kamla Persad-Bissessar and Minister of Labour Errol Mc Leod on the actions taken by PSA president Watson Duke to halt work in the public sector is welcomed.For almost a week, citizens were left to imagine that Mr Duke's threats to shut down the country were becoming a reality, particularly in the face of weak responses from the Government that seemed to be aimed at encouraging the trade unionist to do the right thing.
By the end of last week though, it seemed that some level of sense had prevailed in Cabinet, along with the realisation that while Mr Duke had his mission to pursue on behalf of his members, the Government had a larger responsibility to the country to ensure that essential services weren't halted under quasi-legal circumstances.
The Guardian had warned the Government twice in the recent past to meet Mr Duke's accusations of unsafe working conditions head-on with a response team designed to set the most critical infrastructural failings right in the shortest possible time.Back then, it was clear that the PSA bossman was testing the waters to see just how far he could take his closures of public offices.
http://www.guardian.co.tt/digital/new-members