ITF responds to ABWU report and calls on Browne to apologize for ‘dangerous’ and ‘inflammatory’ remarks about Port workers

The International Transport Workers’ Federation (ITF) has
responded to a notice from the Antigua and Barbuda Workers’
Union that reported Prime Minister Gaston Browne’s attack on
longshore workers at the Antigua Port Authority and on the Union,
itself, and has pledged its unwavering support and solidarity to
those attacked.

The ITF is now calling on the Browne Administration to apologize,
since such dangerous and inflammatory talk will succeed only in
escalating a tense situation.

The ITF also passes on the solidarity of nearly a half-million
dockworkers worldwide and almost 18.5 million transport workers
around the world. 

The international body says it stands with the Union, adding that
dockworkers are not “unskilled” and “ignorant” “labourers,” but, as
was recognized during the pandemic, a highly skilled and key
workforce.

It says that, for their dedication, sacrifice, and hard work,
dockworkers are entitled to fair remuneration, since that work  has
created astronomical profits for global employers and governments
alike, and it is only fair that workers reap some of the profits the
Port has accrued. 

The ITF urges the Government to stop playing politics and to
negotiate with the bargaining agent for the Port workers, in good
faith, on the issues of critical importance to both them and the
Union.

Should the Government fail to react positively, the ITF says, it will
not hesitate to contact Prime Minister Browne and bring this matter
to the international level. 

The body is hoping that a quick resolution can be reached and the
workers “win the pay award and job security they deserve.”