On March 6th Stevedores served the Port of Belize Limited a 21-day notice to return to industrial action if the negotiations do not proceed as expected.
There are 13 days left in that notice and today Stevedores hosted a solidarity rally outside the Port. It's a spot which has become their ground zero because while they dutifully honor the prescribed 21 days they are keeping the port on notice with their continued presence.
We stopped by the rally around noon and spoke to Foreman Windfield Dennison, a second-generation Stevedore who has been in the profession for 31 years.
Winfield Dennison - Stevedore
"Well, I am a stevedore for 37 years, I'm a foreman now and I'm supporting this 200%, not a 100%, because this is my life. I work nowhere else but stevedores all my life. My grandfather used to work stevedore, my father used to work stevedore, now my son is working stevedore. We have to set some standards. We struggle, we been through the high tide we been through the low tide, we been through the sea, we been through the rough. So what deserve us, we just want to get. And we are not playing with these giants. These giants often feel like because they are bosses they can do what they want but with us, we just try to be focused and be calm and do this in a peaceful way. Understanding is everything; you cope, we cope. I believe that negotiations are give and take. You ask for something, we ask for something, we can all share it. But you can't just want and can't give back. That is part of the negotiation and in negotiation you must remember we argue something that both of us can't get but is there to argue about. And then you can use both discussion and discuss about it. You know, the way the first set of negotiation used to be is like they want everything for themselves and stevedores get nothing. I was a part of that team and I got upset. At one point the former president Gonzalez and Mcfoy that started this negotiation for us in 2006. it got put through a lot of changes back and forth with the management. It seems that they get money from the owners or whatever and just insult us. That's what was going on. And afterwards we got Audrey Matura. I told her face to face, 'it looks like you are in these people pockets again, what will you do for us?' We came and got Dale Trujeque. And even when we got Mr. Mose Hyde, during elections I didn't vote for Mose Hyde. But I walked over to the table and said Mr. Mose I didn't vote for you but you are my president now and if you agree to work the way you want to work I would be with you 100% and every turn and swing I would be with you. I'm one that if I put my trust in you and you guarantee it I will be with you to the bitter end. If Mose Hyde goes to jail, I will go to jail with Mose Hyde."
Evan Mose Hyde- President of CWU
"Despite a narrative that last Friday was someone the wrapping up of the issues, really it was just getting a commitment to attack the issues around the table. But the issues are still present. We still have crisis, the patient is still in critical condition. So, while we have made this strategy adjustment where as part of good faith we are now operating under the essential service 21 day intent to strike, which under normal circumstances would be a significant news but because of the way we open this process where we just said, through down the gauntlet man because we are being ignored here, people think moving under 21 days is somehow normalizing the situation. The stevedores have a very acute situation. So, what we had planned was to have this solidarity rally for stevedores where we have invited other union brothers and sisters to join us to show solidarity with us. And so, it is really, you would say, the convergence of the NTUCB's march and stevedore's challenge. That is what we have today in this rally."
Reporter
"What kind of commitments would you require from PBL to not return to industrial action after the 21 days have elapsed?"
Evan Mose Hyde
"We are requiring fairness and justice. That is what we are requiring, that whatever the remedies are, that they are adequate, they represent fairness, they represent justice based on what the stevedores are expecting to comfort them. So, it has to be fair it has to be just, or else it falls short of our threshold."
And CWU President Mose Hyde says that when Stevedores met with ASR in July there were some concerns over safety and security but that overall the company was so pleased with the efficiency of Stevedores that there were talks of bonuses. But he says it was at the same time that he feels the company was running trials with BIG Creek Port. We hope to have comment from ASR/BSI next week.
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