Labor Minister Leroy Baptiste has articulated a staunch defense of disparate wage settlements between public sector unions, asserting that collective bargaining inherently involves calculated risks with inevitable consequences. This position emerges amid controversy surrounding Minister Clyde Elder’s remarks criticizing unions that accepted a previous four percent wage increase from the former PNM administration while now witnessing the Public Services Association (PSA) secure a ten percent increase promised by the incumbent UNC government.
The PSA recently concluded protracted negotiations with the Chief Personnel Officer, finalizing a ten percent wage hike after enduring years of frozen salaries dating back to 2013. Baptiste emphasized that the PSA’s persistence came with significant sacrifices, including legal expenditures and prolonged financial stagnation for its members.
“Negotiations fundamentally involve gambling and risk-taking,” Baptiste stated. “Unions make strategic decisions and must subsequently live with the outcomes. Those who accepted the four percent increase now benefit from updated salaries, while the PSA chose a different path that ultimately yielded different results.”
Regarding whether this settlement establishes a precedent for other unions, Baptiste clarified that the government maintains no legal obligation to renegotiate previously ratified agreements. Any reconsideration of existing contracts would fall exclusively under the Finance Minister’s discretion.
Meanwhile, TT Unified Teachers Association (TTUTA) President Crystal Ashe congratulated the PSA while condemning Elder’s implications that political alignment influenced the wage outcome. “We are non-partisan and reject the notion that rewards should correlate with political affiliations,” Ashe asserted. “Any government should prioritize citizen welfare irrespective of union political positions.”
TTUTA continues awaiting implementation of its negotiated five percent increase for 2020-2023, having received no definitive timeline from either the Education or Finance ministries despite formal inquiries. Ashe remained noncommittal about pursuing higher increases in future negotiations, noting “we will cross that bridge when we reach it.”