Government Conditioning Talks With Limón Dock Workers Union
As the "tortuguismo" at the ports of Limón continues, the government and the dock workers union, the Sindicato de Trabajadores de Japdeva (Sintrajap), continue their war of words and no real deal to end the work slowdown.

The problems at the Limón docks is now 16 days old and began with the union demanding that the government pay the workers the ¢470 million colones negotiated in a collective agreement with the former administration.

The government quickly announced it had found the money to pay the workers on the first day of the work slowdown, however, the leaders of Sintrajap then demanded that the government back down on its plans to privatize the docks. President Oscar Arias has been adamant that that will not happen and intends to keep his promise to the people of Limón, made during his presidential campaign.

The latest round is that the government is agreeing to dialogue with the union leaders, but on the condition that the "tortuguismo" is ended and the docks return to normal operation. In fact, it is only the Limón dock that is on a work slowdown, as the Moín dock is reporting normal operations and the Aléman dock - the dock used by cruise ships - will not be affected, under a promise made by the union.

Marco Vargas Díaz, ministro de Coordinación Interinstitucional del Gobierno (minister of inter-institution co-ordination) said yesterday that the Ministerio de Trabajo y Seguridad Social (MTSS) - Labour Ministry - will meet later this week with Sintrajap representatives to talk.

But the union has to first agree to stop their work slowdown action.

According to Vargas, the government is looking for a permanent solution to the problem and has made it clear that for the province of Limón to develop economically, it has to modernize the docks and there is no money to do so and thus the need to offer the docks to private industry on a concession basis, similar to the docks of Caldera on the Pacific coast.

Sintrajap has said it is not against privatization, however, that the government do so at the new dock to be built and leave the existing docks run by Junta de Administración Portuaria y de Desarrollo Económico de Atlántica (Japdeva) as they are.

In strong words by president Arias, he told the union leaders in the early days of the work slowdown that it is not the union that provides jobs in Limón and he intends to keep is promise of a more efficient dock at Limón as part of the government's plans to allow the Caribbean zone to develop economically.

Regarding the losses suffered by producers and exporters due to the work slowdown, Vargas said he doubts that the amount reaches the us$10 million dollars being rumoured, because the government moved in with the Fuerza Pública (police) within days of the work slowdown and allowed movement into and from the docks. And though the crane operators have been slow in moving cargo, ships are being loaded and unloaded.