By John Myers Jr., Staff ReporterPAY TALKS between the University and Allied Workers Union (UAWU) and the debt-ridden Jamaica Urban Transit Company (JUTC) has moved closer to reaching a settlement.
At a meeting on Monday, the management of the JUTC made several proposals to the UAWU on the issue of a reclassification exercise which is at the centre of the dispute.
Yesterday, Keith Goodison, Vice President of Human Resources and Public Relations at the JUTC, told The Gleaner that another meeting is set with the union for today at 1 p.m., to fine-tune details of its proposal regarding a time for the payment of retroactive salaries and the new salary adjustments.
The union has said that it expects about a thousand employees will benefit from the increases, but has requested the list of employees, to see exactly the impact that it is going to have on the workforce." However, Mr. Goodison said that close to 2000 employees would benefit from the reclassification.
JUTC should have started paying the increases earlier this month, however, the management backed down on the promise, causing workers to become restive. Mr. Goodison noted yesterday that there were still signs that some workers are restive, but said there was no disruption in operations.
The demands have come at a time when the state-owned bus company, which operates on a $3.4 billion budget, is reporting millions of dollars in losses and the Ministry of Finance scurrying to find funds to keep the company afloat.
Minister of Finance, Dr. Omar Davies disclosed at a press conference last Friday that "the Ministry has accepted that it would assume responsibility for all the acquisition of capital in terms of depots, buses et cetera. But, the fare box must meet operational expenses."
The Finance Minister explained that "the submission we have taken to cabinet is an explicit long term policy, whereby the taxpayer will provide the rolling stock for the JUTC and the fare box will cover operational costs."
Mr. Goodison, while conceding that the new salary adjustments will impact significantly on the operational budget of the JUTC, asserted that "we think we can work through it (as we look) to increase revenue and increase efficiency from what is happening."
UAWU vice-president Clifton Grant explained that the JUTC has given its commitment to start making payments by the end of this month. "They have created the room for dialogue" but, in the meantime, certain aspects of the proposal need to be ironed out, he said.
