More LIAT Strike Fallout Left:Prime Minister Dr. Gonsalves is fed up with all the disruption in LIAT operations. Right:John Maginley, Tourism Minister in Antigua and Barbuda, has described LIAT pilots as ‘unconscionable’. Left:Prime Minister Dr. Gonsalves is fed up with all the disruption in LIAT operations. Right:John Maginley, Tourism Minister in Antigua and Barbuda, has described LIAT pilots as ‘unconscionable’. Last week’s strike action by LIAT pilots has certainly raised the ‘pressure’ of politicians across the OECS region. Chairman of LIAT shareholder governments, Dr. Ralph Gonsalves, Prime Minister of St. Vincent and the Grenadines, is already on record as declaring that he was absolutely fed up” with what he called LIAT’s self-inflicted wounds. A frustrated Dr. Gonsalves referred to what could be a an embarrassment to him when he reminded that he only recently held talks with the president of the Regional Council of Martinique, who indicated some interest in becoming an equity partner in LIAT. And while he anxiously awaits a report on the circumstances that triggered last week’s pilot strike action, he called for this kind of foolishness to stop,” and reiterated his support for designating LIAT an essential services. Support for this also came from Prime Minister of Dominica Roosevelt Skerrit (see story on this page), as well as Antigua and Barbuda’s Tourism Minister John Maginley. The Observer Newspaper of Antigua reports Maginley as saying, in a direct attack on the Leeward Islands Airline Pilots Association (LIALPA), You can’t have one body creating a dysfunction in this thing because they have one work-related dispute. That is not right. It’s not responsible.” He continued: Does LIAT have other problems? Absolutely! But compounding it with stupidity like that does not make it better,” he added. Maginley went on to describe the pilots as unconscionable,” claiming that they (pilots) think they know more than anyone else, and it’s unfortunate.” He declared his support to make LIAT an essential service. Meanwhile, Maginley’s colleague, James Lovell, Minister of Finance, Antigua and Barbuda, responding to a question on radio about a move by other shareholder governments to gradually strip Antigua of the LIAT headquarters base, stated that he was unaware of any such move. He, however, stated that his government will fight any effort to do so. A joint release from LIAT and LIALPA said they held positive discussions and would continue talking to address legitimate concerns” raised by the pilots union. LIALPA refused further comment.
Posted on: Sun, 17 Nov 2013 05:26:44 +0000
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