Blue flu is still in effect. Members of the Fire, Police and Prison Services entered the second day of a sickout action over a collapse in salary negotiations.
Divisional heads of the T&T Police Service say they weren't badly affected by the mass sick-out action, but Prison and Fire Services both reported low staff turnout.
Yesterday, the country went through a mass sickout action in which Police, Fire and Prison Service threatened to call in sick or go slow while on duty.
But TTPS Supt David Abraham, head of the Northern Division, said few people were absent yesterday. Likewise today, Abraham said only a few members of the TTPS called in sick in the Northern Division.
Abraham reported that in the Division there was only one robbery, in St Joseph, and assured the public that there is no threat to their safety.
Head of Eastern Division, Senior Superintendent Sacenarine Mahabir also said only four people were absent from work yesterday which was “nothing unusual” for the Division. He added that today there was the same number of absenteeism.
Leo Ramkissoon, president of the Fire Service Association, said there was a very low turnout both today and yesterday.
“Things are not going well at all. There was a very low turnout,” Ramkissoon said.
Ramkissoon said the sick ut action was not only because of salary negotiations but because of several issues including outstanding backpay for the period of 2008 to 2010, and health and safety issues.
The Prison Service also had a low turnout, with approximately 60 percent of the prison guards calling in sick.
A senior source close to Prisons told the Guardian that when prison officers were understaffed, the senior prison guards are rerouted through the different prisons. Some 200 recruits who are ready to graduate from the programme were also sent out to guard the prisons.