One protesting member of staff at the University of the West Indies’ St Augustine Campus was struck by a vehicle during a protest he was part of just inside the northern gate of the university yesterday afternoon.
Other protesters subsequently ganged up on the driver, hurling obscene and threatening language.
He then took out his cellphone and began recording the incident. UWI’s estate police then intervened but after a few minutes the driver turned his vehicle around to access another exit.
About 250 workers yesterday demonstrated over their current state of their salary negotiations after the rejection of a six per cent offer from the Chief Personnel Officer.
Oilfields Workers’ Trade Union (OWTU) vice-president (UWI) Sherbert Mc Kie told the T&T Guardian that non-academic workers were currently working on 2010/2011 salaries. He said the workers felt they were being victimised and discriminated against, since the academic staff had recently received increases.
“From what we know, the academic staff and senior administrative staff have received their 2014 salaries and 70 per cent backpay and they will be paid the remaining 30 per cent at the end of May. This alone tells us that they don’t really care about us,” Mc Kie said, adding some of the workers have over 30 years’ service.
“We are certain that over $87 million has already been paid out to settle their end of the negotiations while we are still working on the 2010/2011 salaries which is very unfair,” he said.
Mc Kie also claimed a female worker with ten years service was given a suspension letter yesterday because she was allegedly involved in the protest action.
“She is also a union officer and I believe that there is now an attack on all the union officers,” Mc Kie said, vowing to take the protest to the next level if the issue is not quickly resolved.
Exams affected
However, speaking with the T&T Guardian yesterday Pro Vice Chancellor, Prof Clement Sankat, said the workers’ action was putting UWI students, especially those who are writing the final examinations, under duress.
He said about 19,000 students would be sitting thousands of exams over the next four weeks. “Any attempts by the OWTU branch to put our students under stress in an environment of final examinations cannot be condoned. The students are not partied to these negotiations and should not be held hostage to this,” Sankat said.
He said a letter was sent to the union by the director of human resources asking it to desist from its actions. “I am also appealing to the leadership of the OWTU and the president general and his team to guide the campus branch and to also ask them to desist from such actions.
“Let me say that the university is a very demanding institution, in terms of the rigour of our exams, and putting our students under more duress is not something I think our university, all our staff, students, all of our alumni, will condone,” Sankat said.
Asked if the letter was not adhered to what would be the next course of action by UWI, Sankat replied:
“Well, if they are our staff of UWI who are engaged in such behaviour, then they are also subject to the rules and regulations of our university in terms of disciplinary, appropriate conduct and there are consequences.
“I hope we don’t go there. Our staff understands that in the university, how we conduct our business must be exemplary and I hope our staff understands this, that the citizens of T&T look to the university for exemplary behaviour.”
Sankat said he understood the staff’s plight and added all was being done to resolve the matter as soon as possible. He said he had been informed by Minister of Tertiary Education and Skills Training Fazal Karim that the matter was before the Inter-ministerial committee for consideration and was hoping it would be dealt with urgently.
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Prof Sankat said that on Tuesday, one student, who was just about to sit an exam, panicked and ran out of the exam room. The student, he said was subsequently medically examined.
"Students must not be put under pressure. Maybe this happened because of the fear instilled. However, the matter is being investigated," he added.