PM: Government to cut contract jobs from Public Service

Prime Minister Kamla Persad-Bissessar takes a batting stance with Homeland Security Minister Roger Alexander as her wicket keeper during some fun and games after the closing ceremony of the JAVA Community Cricket Programme at Wilson Grounds, Penal, on August 27. - Lincoln Holder

PRIME Minister Kamla Persad-Bissessar says she will eliminate contract employment from the Public Service, to result in workers have fairer job terms and savings to the State speaking to reporters at an event in Penal on August 27.

In light of reports of Finance Minister Davendranath Tancoo moving money allocated for infrastructure to instead pay state sector salaries, a reporter asked if the PM was planning any job cuts in the public service.

Persad-Bissessar said the public service had thousands of vacancies and she planned to fill them on a phased basis by allowing people to come in an apply.

"On the other hand, what we may have to cut is contract employment."

Her rationale was that it was more costly to pay contract jobs than permanent positions.

"You have no security of tenure, you cannot get a loan, you cannot get a mortgage, you cannot leverage your job.

"You could be sent home at any time."

She said her vision was for the money saved from contract jobs to fund an increased number of permanent jobs in the public sector.

Asked to reply to Diego Martin North East MP Colm Imbert's claim that the government was using money from loans made to develop infrastructure to instead pay public sector salaries, the PM said she'd like to ask him what he had done with $550 billion in revenues over his tenure as finance minister.

She added, "So nothing is new in finance and there are different finance mechanisms.

"They left us with an empty treasury and my government is doing all that it can to keep the country working and move along."

Of Imbert, she said, "He did the same and more. He borrowed to pay borrowings."

Asked if the government was using new or old loans to pay public servants now, the PM said, "I cannot answer that. You will have to ask my Minister of Finance."

A 2017 news story by Andy Johnson estimated TT had 13,800 contract workers out of 27,000-30,000 public sector works, a figure approaching one in every two workers.

Newsday was unable to contact Labour Minister Leroy Baptiste, but previously as PSA head he had damned short-term (contract) work as exploitative of workers in a 2024 media interview.

He had alleged a former government had been deliberately trying to perpetuate the phenomenon of contract employment.

Baptiste had said, "It is all about power, the power to hire and fire persons.

"Workers are not being given decent work. They are not being allowed to plan and organise their lives by (the government) trying to perpetuate this contract employment."

TT Registered Nurses Association president Idi Stuart warmly welcomed the new move, which Newsday was first to tell him of.

"The association has been lobbying the government repeatedly to ensure all nursing personnel are brought on a full-time, permanent basis, for the reasons of job security, getting loans at the bank, and all of those things.

"Also, because the contract employment has been used over the years as a disciplinary tool – which is not supposed to be – against employees, to threaten them with their jobs, if they don't comply with some erroneous instruction."

Nurses Association: 'It can't be like Cepep'

Stuart said his association was "definitely in favour" of curbing contract employment.

"And it has already begun, following the association's challenging the regional health authorities (RHAs) in the Industrial Court and being successful in the court."

He said the association's victory had pushed several authorities – the South West, North Central and North West RHAs – to begin the process of rationalising nurses employment.

"I mean it is illogical where you have a situation that in TT we are short of thousands of nursing personnel – recently highlighted by the Minister of Health – yet the ones that you do have you have them on short-term contracts. I think it was 1,600 persons the minister would have highlighted."

Stuart linked the filling of nursing vacancies to the awarding of them full-time positions.

Saying the elimination of contract had been part of the 2025 UNC election manifesto, he said, "So we are definitely pleased with that. It is a continuation and we welcome that. We will be definitely pleased."

However Stuart sounded a note of caution. "But it must be a transition of course. It cannot be 'stopping', like how they (government) have stopped Cepep and after the evaluation they are going to restart in some form or fashion. It can't be like that.

"It can't be stopped for two or three months, because we are already running on fumes. To even contemplate that would be very illogical.

"But we don't believe it will be like that but will be a smooth transition."

Stuart asked what would happen to the years of service logged up by workers on contract who were then put into permanent jobs. He hoped past service would be factored in to calculate their tenure in their new jobs.

He pointed out some problems that had already arisen when some workers were moved from contract to permanent positions.

"We had a number of persons who were made permanent and then their pension is less than the government pension paid to person who did not contribute to a pension."

He said the RHAs have a contributory pension plan paid into by employer and employee.

"Employees are very surprised when they get their pension and it is even less that what the government pension pays. That is another worrying concern for the association."

He said former prime minister Dr Keith Rowley had begun to address some of the irregularities of nurses pensions.

"We are definitely pleased with the continuation of that."
(With reporting by Laurel Williams)