Hands-on approach by Devant at port

As a long-time port employee, I was somewhat surprised at the hands-on approach being taken by the Minister of Transport, Devant Maharaj, in the current dispute between employees and management at the port. On February 11, a Saturday, he was present at the Port of Port-of-Spain, where he met with the president of the SWWTU, Michael Annisette, and members of the port management team. I understand that the meeting was productive and the workers were later assured by our president that all was well.

The minister then proceeded on a tour of port facilities accompanied by Annisette. What struck me as being unusual was that instead of just summoning everyone to his office, the minister chose to go to the port himself, demonstrating respect for the workers and our union. I don’t remember ever seeing a minister at the port for anything like this under the previous administration.

I do not know what the final outcome of the negotiations will be, but I am confident that we have a Minister of Transport that is willing to talk to the ordinary workers in an effort to address their concerns. I look forward to the next visit by Minister Maharaj. I sincerely hope it will be under better circumstances.

J Gajadhar
Via e-mail