If the Prime Minister wanted to extend an olive branch she should instruct the boards of all State-owned enterprises and Chief Personnel Officer, Stephanie Lewis, to stop the "nonsense of five per cent."President of the Oilfields Workers' Trade Union (OWTU) Ancel Roget said that yesterday during a demonstration at the Water and Sewerage Authority (WASA) compound, St Joseph."Let us settle negotiations in a justifiable manner," pleaded Roget.He questioned Persad-Bissessar's repeated invitation for unions to go back to the bargaining table."How can we go back to the bargaining table, if we have never left the bargaining table?" questioned Roget.His comments followed a statement by Persad-Bissessar on Tuesday calling on disgruntled trade unions to return to the bargaining table "as there were no need for confrontation."
President general of the National Union of General and Federated Workers (NUGFW), James Lambert, claimed certain WASA officials had attempted to interfere with yesterday's demonstration.Lambert told the workers he had received a call from a WASA official who told him there would be no meeting if Roget or other "outside speakers" were allowed to address the crowd.Lambert told protesters T&T was in trying times. He said T&T was the only country in the Caribbean to offer five per cent for three years.He said the CPO had made an increase as related to Cost of Living and other allowances but the union would not be fooled."When you receive pension it does not calculate allowances, it calculates your direct wages," added Lambert.