The Alport Banjul Staff Association, has declared an immediate stop to all overtime and public holiday work, pointing to unresolved disagreements over overtime pay and “threatening” messages from Alport management.
This standoff follows several weeks of unsuccessful talks about overtime compensation and working conditions at Alport Banjul. The Association’s President, Adama Jatta said by week’s end, staff had not received their pay, forcing their families to begin the weekend without salaries and further fueling workers’ frustrations.
“We are not refusing to work, but since you are unable to provide the remuneration for the services we provide, we have said that we are not going to provide any more services which are not compulsory,” Jatta told reporters at a press briefing. “Staff came in solidarity, and we said we will not offer overtime services.”
Jatta stressed that the association remains ready to talk and is not “a stiff body” against dialogue. Staff only resumed normal hours after the Gambia Ports Authority (GPA), the industry regulator, promised to address their grievances.
While “everything went back to normal” for a time, tensions flared again after Jatta’s office received a letter from Alport’s Managing Director, Salih Levent Kaçar. According to Jatta, the letter was not formally addressed to him, and he only discovered it when it began to circulate on social media. Jatta said the letter warned of legal action against staff who refused to work operational hours and overtime.
“We do not find that letter to be intimidating, for the record. It is not proper for management to come and threaten us,” Jatta said, adding that he had called for an apology from Mr. Salih, which was ultimately given by Alport’s Turkish investor.
Overtime Pay
Jatta criticized Alport’s offer of a fixed fee of D1,775, saying it isn’t backed by any GPA or Alport policy and is “very small for people working twelve hours straight.” He argued that international labour standards require overtime to be paid at 150% of normal hourly rates, and public holiday work should be paid at 200%.
“We are now saying that we want to negotiate for the overtime services… We should be given the chance to negotiate based on global standards,” Jatta said, highlighting that many staff are expected to work public holidays without proper compensation.
Jatta also raised concerns about working conditions at Alport, saying staff are exposed to cement dust and long hours, while management “does not work under these conditions.”
Return to Normal Work Hours
In response to the deadlock, Alport staff have limited their work to standard hours—ending at 4 p.m. from Monday to Thursday, and 1 p.m. on Fridays. There will be no work on public holidays until the dispute is resolved and management apologizes for what staff see as threats. The association has rejected the fixed overtime rate and is insisting on a new, negotiated deal.
Alport employees have recently endured delayed pay, inconsistent overtime policies, and what they describe as poor communication from management. Workers say overtime compensation has fluctuated and that the method for calculating extended or holiday pay remains unclear.
“We have opened our doors for negotiation,” Jatta said. “But until management sits down with us and agrees to fair terms, and until Mr Salih apologises to the staff, there will be no overtime work.”
This labour dispute comes as Alport Banjul reportedly seeks a EUR 13.5 million loan from Zenith Bank to fund ongoing rehabilitation efforts. The GPA sees this as a possible breach of the original concession agreement, warning it could burden concession assets or create new liabilities for the GPA, shifting risks in a way that was never agreed.
With port operations in Banjul—a key economic hub for The Gambia—potentially at risk, the urgency for a resolution between Alport management and its staff is growing.
