Talks will resume today to try and settle a dispute involving air terminal staff in Fiji.
Photo: Alex Perrottet/RNZ
The National Secretary of the Federated Airline Staff Association, Vilikesa Naulumatua, said close to 400 staff remain outside the Air Terminal Services facility in Nadi this morning after they were locked out by the company.
He said the employees' representatives would be meeting at midday with the company and the Ministry of Employment's permanent secretary.
The government said the workers had declared an illegal strike by walking off work on Saturday but the workers say they were holding a shareholders' meeting.
The firm is 49 percent owned by the workers and provides catering, baggage handling, engineering and other services for airlines flying out of Nadi.
Mr Naulumatua said the workers wanted to return to work but without conditions attached.
"They're trying to put conditions , saying that the workers should return to work but their reps sign a declaration to say that they were wrong in walking out and having a meeting concerning the company.
"We have rejected that. We will not implicate ourselves in trying to say we were on strike. No, we were having a legitimate meeting to address legitimate concerns," he said.
Mr Naulumatua said the seven member board was only a "card board" with only one workers' representative.
"The government is playing a bullying game by trying to suppress workers' voices on the board by having just one person there."
The Board chair Riyaz Sayed-Khaiyum told FBC News the board was willing to look into the workers' grievances as it wanted them to return to work.
"Those people who walked off their job who abandoned their positions over the weekend must sign letters saying exactly what happened, that they abandoned their jobs on Saturday, they made a mistake they shouldn't have done it, they were, misinformed and possibly ill advised to do so, that now they realize they made a mistake and that when they go back to work the management may take disciplinary actions against them."
ATS CEO Hare Mani told the Fiji Times he would not comment on calls for him to be removed.
"The only thing I will say is that I have been targeted by certain individuals because in the time I have been acting CEO, I have brought in transparency and good governance and people don't like that."
