Persons Prohibited from taking industrial action.

DID THE POLICE BREAK THE LAW?

Everyone will agree the police took industrial action on Monday & Tuesday
The question is was it illegal? And if it was, what is going to be done about it?

This is what the Law states:

Quote :

Persons prohibited from taking industrial action.

69. (1) The following persons shall not take part in any industrial action:
(a) members of the Public Service in Trinidad and Tobago;

(b) members of the Prison Service of Trinidad and Tobago;

(c) members of the Fire Service of Trinidad and Tobago;

(d) members of the Teaching Service; and

(e) members of the staff and other employees of the Central Bank, established by the Central Bank Act.
69. (2) A person mentioned in subsection (1) who contravenes the provisions thereof is liable on summary conviction to a fine of five hundred dollars and to imprisonment for three months.

69. (3) The holder of an office in a trade union or in an organisation of persons mentioned in subsection (1) who calls for or causes industrial action to be taken or any person or organisation who induces or persuades any other person to take such action in any of the Services mentioned in subsection (1) is liable on summary conviction to a fine of ten thousand dollars and to imprisonment for eighteen months.

69. (4) Section 3 of the Constitution shall have effect for the purpose of the definition of any of the Services referred to in subsection (1) (other than in paragraph (e) thereof).

Liability of officers of companies.
70. Where an offence punishable under this Act has been committed by a company, any person who at the time of the commission of the offence was a director, general manager, secretary or any other employee of the company, not being a worker, or was purporting to act in any such capacity, shall be deemed to be guilty of that offence, unless he proves that the contravention was committed without his consent or connivance and that he exercised all such diligence to prevent the commission of the offence as he ought to have exercised having regard to the nature of his functions in that capacity and to all the circumstances.

Interpretation


“industrial action” means strikes and lockouts, and any action, including sympathy strikes and secondary boycotts (whether or not done in contemplation of, or in furtherance of, a trade dispute), by an employer or a trade union or other organisation or by any number of workers or other persons to compel any worker, trade union or other organisation, employer or any other person, as the case may be, to agree to terms of employment, or to comply with any demands made by the employer or the trade union or other organisation or by those workers or other persons, and includes action commonly known as a “sit-down strike”, a “go” or a “sick”, except that the expression does not include –
(a) a failure to commence work in any agricultural undertaking where work is performed by task caused by a delay in the conclusion of customary arrangements between employers and workers as to the size or nature of a task; and

(b) a failure to commence work or a refusal to continue working by reason of the fact that unusual circumstances have arisen which are hazardous or injurious to health or life;
“lockout” means the closing of a place of employment or the suspension of work by an employer or the refusal by an employer to employ or continue to employ any number of workers employed by him, done with a view to induce or compel workers employed by him to agree to terms or conditions of, or affecting employment, but does not include the closing of a place of employment for the protection of property or persons therein;


Industrial action in essential services, prohibited.

67. (1) This section shall be read and construed without prejudice to sections 63 and 64, and a reference in those sections and in this section and section 68 to the term “workers” shall be read as a reference to all employees engaged in essential services.

67. (2) An employer or a worker carrying on or engaged in an essential service shall not take industrial action in connection with any such essential service.

67. (3) An employer who contravenes subsection (2) is liable on summary conviction to a fine of forty thousand dollars and to imprisonment for three years.

67. (4) A worker who contravenes subsection (2) is liable on summary conviction to a fine of one thousand dollars and to imprisonment for six months.

67. (5) A trade union or other organisation, the holder of an office in a trade union or other organisation or any other person who calls for, or causes industrial action to be taken in, an essential service or induces or persuades any worker in that service to take such action is liable on summary conviction—

(a) in the case of a trade union or other organisation to a fine of twenty thousand dollars, and the Board may cancel the certificate of recognition under Part III;

(b) in the case of the holder of an office in a trade union or other organisation to a fine of ten thousand dollars and to imprisonment for twelve months, and such person shall be disqualified from holding office in any trade union or other organisation for a period of five years after conviction therefor; or

(c) in the case of an individual who is not the holder of an office in a trade union or other organisation to a fine of two thousand dollars and to imprisonment for two years.

67. (6) The President of Trinidad and Tobago may by order, subject to negative resolution of both Houses of Parliament, vary the Second Schedule by adding thereto or removing therefrom any service.

Offence for persons to contribute financial assistance to promote or support industrial action.
68. (1) A person who, for the purpose of promoting or maintaining the conduct of industrial action taken or continued in an essential service contrary to this Act, directly or indirectly contributes financial assistance to an employer or a trade union that calls for or causes such action to be taken or to any worker involved in such action, is liable on summary conviction to a fine of ten thousand dollars and to imprisonment for eighteen months.

68. (2) An employer or a trade union or other organisation that receives any financial assistance for the purpose of supporting industrial action taken or continued in an essential service contrary to this Act is liable on summary conviction to a fine of ten thousand dollars or in the case of the holder of an office in a trade union to a fine of five thousand dollars and to imprisonment for one year.

68. (3) A worker or other person who receives financial assistance for the purpose of supporting industrial action taken or continued in an essential service contrary to this Act is liable on summary conviction to a fine of five hundred dollars and three months’ imprisonment.



http://www.ilocarib.org.tt/projects/cariblex/tt_act2.shtml#Persons_prohibited_from_taking_industrial_action.

Stop order in the national interest.


65. (1) Where industrial action is threatened or taken, whether in conformity with this Act or otherwise, and the Minister considers that the national interest is threatened or affected thereby, he may make application to the Court ex parte for an injunction restraining the parties from commencing or from continuing the action; and the Court may make such order thereon as it considers fit having regard to the national interest.

65. (2) Where the Court upon such an application makes an order under subsection (1), then—
(a) the parties bound by the order shall thereupon refrain from, or discontinue, the industrial action; and

(b) unless the Court otherwise specifically orders, nothing in section 63(1)(c) shall apply to any worker involved in the industrial action,
and the Court may further order that the matter shall be deemed to have been referred to the Court by the parties thereto for determination.

65. (3) An order made by the Court under subsection (1) shall be published in the Gazette and in at least one daily newspaper circulating in Trinidad and Tobago and the publication shall be deemed to be service of notice thereof on all parties to the dispute, including all workers engaged in the industrial action, whether threatened or taking place.

65. (4) Subject to this section, no order of the Court made under subsection (1) shall be deemed to have validated any action taken if the action was not otherwise in conformity with this Part.

Industrial action prohibited during hearing, etc.
66. (1) No party to a dispute may continue, or take, industrial action while proceedings in relation to a dispute to which that action relates are pending before the Court or the Court of Appeal.

66. (2) No person may take industrial action as a result of disagreement or dissatisfaction with, an order or award of the Court or the Court of Appeal.

66. (3) A person who contravenes this section is guilty of a contempt of the Court or of the Court of Appeal, as the case may be.


http://www.ilocarib.org.tt/projects/cariblex/tt_act2.shtml#Persons_prohibited_from_taking_industrial_action.