by Nick Delgado

Guam - Guam Federation of Teachers president Matt Rector says employee issues at the Port Authority of Guam are part of the reason the agency did not receive the TIGER grant. Rector says Port union members have informed him that management at the agency is encouraging them to quit the union.

The problem has not only resulted in numerous unfair labor practices filed by the GFT with the Department of Labor, but Rector is now asking chairperson on labor Senator Adolpho Palacios (D) to hold an oversight hearing on the matter.

Rector adds that the GFT sent their concerns to Washington, DC officials today. "We told the people at the Port, 'You better to the right thing, obey the law and negotiate in good faith with these guys', and they refused to do it. So we sent all our documentation to our people in DC. And lo and behold, the TIGER grant got denied. And we told them 'It's going to happen and we'll do it again.'"

Senator Palacios believes the issue can be resolved between the Port and GFT without holding an oversight.

In the meantime, Port General Manager Rick Agustin told KUAM News, "The Port Authority of Guam and the GFT both signed confidentiality clauses, which prohibits us from speaking publicly about the negotiations."