Unions To LIAT - Retract Letter

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Business News

Wednesday, 11 April 2012 02:30

By Everton Barnes

Antigua St John's - The unions representing LIAT employees across its system are calling on the Antigua-based airline to retract it letters of termination dispatched to workers last week or face disruption to its operation.

The letters to over thirty employees were sent out last Thursday and which are due to take effect on April 15.

General Secretary of the Antigua and Barbuda Workers Union, Senator David Massiah, said both he and his Grenadian counterpart, Senator Chester Humphrey, have dispatched a letter to the airline demanding that it retracts the letter or face possible disruption of its operation across the entire LIAT network.

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“Senator Humphrey and I have already touched base with the union representatives across the system and they are waiting for our signal to take action,” he stated.

Massiah said the move by LIAT would see 33 staff members getting the axe in phase one of the planned staff deductions with fourteen more to follow in the second phase.

“The majority of these people will come from Antigua and this further cements my belief that there are efforts afoot to move LIAT’s entire operational base from Antigua,” he declared.

The union boss did not mince his words when he spoke about the top management of the airline.

“You have people who are making large salaries every month and you want to tell me that up to now they cannot arrive at a strategic plan to turn around this airline. Bad management is what is responsible for LIAT to be in the position it’s in. For example, despite not operating at its Woods City Office, the airline is still paying the rent, because nobody took the time to check the lease. That’s bad management! Why then do they always want to chop at the bottom?” he asked rhetorically.

Massiah said the airline’s decision to undertake the staff deduction is premature as there are on-going discussions on the issue.

“The company acted hastily when it dispatched the letters. It has not listened, nor took on board the many suggestions and requests the unions made in an effort to arrive at solutions to the challenges the airline faced.

"When the unions requested a comprehensive plan of how the airline intended to carry out its stated streamlining of its operations and staff reduction, we were only given a mere summary,” he disclosed.

According to Massiah…the airline’s reasons for not disclosing its plans came out of its fears that the plan would fall into the hands of its competitors.



“We suggested that the plan should only be discussed with a small select committee to include – Sir Roy Trotman of Barbados, Senator Humphrey, Capt. Arthur Senhouse of the Pilots’ Association and me,” he noted. However, he said that this suggestion has not found favour with the airline.

Massiah said he is calling on Prime Minister, Baldwin Spencer, to look into this matter, particularly in light of the impact that the planned retrenchment would have on several households against the background of the prevailing economic conditions.

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