BWIA unions submit cost-cutting proposals Express 06.17.03 Two trade unions representing BWIA workers have submitted cost-cutting=20 proposals to the airline=92s management to help reduce expenses at the=20 cash-strapped national airline. The Aviation, Communication and Allied=20 Workers Union (Acawu), which represents more than 1,000 BWIA employees,=20 submitted a proposal yesterday which it projected would reduce payroll=20 expenses by 6.07 per cent. The proposal entails employees surrendering=20 their monthly meal chits and giving three sick leave days and one day of=20 the annual leave. Acawu president Christopher Abraham said this would=20 reduce the payroll by six per cent, more than the five per cent requested.= =20 Another union, the Communications, Transport and General Workers Union=20 (Cattu), has also submitted a proposal for BWIA workers which includes=20 giving up a few sick leave days and a performance bonus. This would also=20 save the airline more than six per cent of payroll expenses. Trade Minister= =20 Kenneth Valley told the Express yesterday that BWIA=92s management had until= =20 midnight last night to submit its cost-cutting proposals. If it receives a= =20 proposal from the company today, the government will have its consultants=20 review the documents. Valley said the main pre-condition to the airline=20 receiving financial aid was for its to bring its operating costs down by=20 about 20 per cent to US$0.08 per seat mile. BWIA=92s general manager Nelson= =20 Tom Yew said late yesterday that he was about to go into a meeting to=20 discuss cost reduction measures. =97Curtis Rampersad *************************************************** The owner of Roger's Trinbago Site/TnTisland.com Roj (Roger James) escape email mailto:ejames@xxxxxxxxx Trinbago site: www.tntisland.com Carib Brass Ctn site www.tntisland.com/caribbeanbrassconnection/ Steel Expressions www.mts.net/~ejames/se/ Mas Site: www.tntisland.com/tntrecords/mas2003/ Site of the Week: http://www.carib-link.net/naparima/naps.html TnT Webdirectory: http://search.co.tt *********************************************************