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Ballot will decide Union rights at Cammell Laird
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by PANORAMA reporter
The government and the Gibraltar Trades Council, the body that represents all unions, agreed yesterday that a secret ballot be held to ascertain the views of Cammell Laird employees on the issue of union recognition. The ballot will be held on 23 April.
Union recognition has been much in the news of late, with protests and press releases having been the order of the day.
Now, the unions making up the GTC have agreed not to make any further public statements about the issue until after the ballot, except of course the information that will become necessary to hold the ballot.
Employees will have to decide if they wish to be represented by a trade union and if so, which union. They can also state if they prefer a workers committee or whether they desire no representation at all.
CONDITIONS
The question of conditions prevalent at Cammell Laird has also been a red hot issue. The GTC will now provide the government with details of such allegations, and the government will look into the position under applicable laws and 'commercial agreements' between the shipyard and the government.
The point has been made during protests that workers are against what have been described as 'slave conditions'. A series of poor conditions and attitudes by management have been highlighted, including accusations that the law may have been broken. These issues will now be assessed by the government.
Cammell Laird has meanwhile allowed locked-out workers to return to work as a gesture of goodwill, but on existing terms and conditions applicable to the workforce.
The agreement came about after what a joint press release described as a 'lengthy and constructive' meeting at No.6 Convent Place yesterday. All the unions in the GTC were there as well as the chief minister and the minister for trade and industry.
Outside No.6, a group of workers gathered making their points.
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