OWTU TO SERVE STRIKE NOTICE ON PETROTRIN

[toyolink]

Unfortunately, I have heard and witnessed this all before.
The lessons we should have learnt from last crisis were all lost when 'energy prices' rebounded.
Based on our history its quite reasonable to expect that everybody in for a really rough ride.
Until things get dire would the personalities and egos at play adjust their attitudes to facilitate conciliation.
This is not really a OWTU vs us story but a us vs us reality.
BTW, I expect other unions to get unto the wave when the battle levels are elevated.
.........2017 IS HERE FOLKS.

[MG Man]

. I am waaay ahead of u. Yes i can see and travel through time in the 'blink of an eye'.

.

PM me some winning lotto numbers nah

[bluesclues]

So wah is the verdict?? Strike or no...I sure it have someone here on the inside

If yuh pick all d mango on the tree... strike or no strike the tree have no mango to give.

[bluesclues]

. I am waaay ahead of u. Yes i can see and travel through time in the 'blink of an eye'.

.

PM me some winning lotto numbers nah

That would constitute the irresponsible and balance upsetting use of my power.

And u rich already u have 5 car and one is a bmw.

[MG Man]

bahahahahahahahaha
which car is a BMW tho?
O_O

[Miktay]

State bureaucrats are on a slippery slope when they ask workers to make a sacrifice for the benefit of the country. Nobody iz making sacrifices anymore for the 'good of the country'

But if Petrotrin runs at an economic loss...it iz de-facto subsidized by the people. That also applies to a majority of loss making State enterprises BTW

But PT workers should realize they operate by the grace the people and would do well to be guided accordingly in the tone of their union leaders public statements.

[bluesclues]

bahahahahahahahaha
which car is a BMW tho?
O_O

Mini cooper owned by bmw that good enugh to pass lol

[MG Man]

But PT workers should realize they operate by the grace the people and would do well to be guided accordingly in the tone of their union leaders public statements.

u really think they care dan?
They functioning in their own reality that's separate and apart from the rest of us

[bluesclues]

Anyhow. Just doh put God out allyuh mind and bailout petrtrin without firing the whole board and all the managers and replacing them with progressive energy sector minded individuals.

I say..'energy sector'.. not 'oil and gas alone' sector eh.

[Miktay]

But PT workers should realize they operate by the grace the people and would do well to be guided accordingly in the tone of their union leaders public statements.

u really think they care dan?
They functioning in their own reality that's separate and apart from the rest of us

Whether they can or cant remains to be seen.

Thiz IMHO iz largely going to be a public relations battle...with the winners being judged by a majority.

It will depend on who can elicit sympathy/empathy of a majority: Union or Big Gubbament?

[The_Honourable]

The government should increase from 0% and settle for the 2011-2014 period at least... BUT the 2014-2017 period shud be minimal to zero... so hard luck on the 18% increase dream for now.

If OWTU strikes, the country will be against it where the public will embrace the idea of Privatization.

[bluesclues]

The government should increase from 0% and settle for the 2011-2014 period at least... BUT the 2014-2017 period shud be minimal to zero... so hard luck on the 18% increase dream for now.

If OWTU strikes, the country will be against it where the public will embrace the idea of Privatization.

Steups. Allyuh is a set a fkin piper and spranger yes. Everyting allyuh want to sell to foreigner and dual citizenship mc like duprey. To take 50bn out we economy and fly the coop too rich to prosecute and leave trinidad in sheit and deficit. A severe lack of patriotic development in these mentalities.

[Numb3r4]

Sigh.....barely 3 days into the new year and I'm exhausted.

[Miktay]

The government should increase from 0% and settle for the 2011-2014 period at least... BUT the 2014-2017 period shud be minimal to zero... so hard luck on the 18% increase dream for now.

If OWTU strikes, the country will be against it where the public will embrace the idea of Privatization.

Privatization may or may not work. Depends onna lotta things.

Deferred maintenance iz one key factor.

[Redman]

That's the point ....if the union forces the co into a long strike....the decision to close and restructure,sell,privatization etc is easy to make...especially if public sentiment is polarized away from the union
Keep in mind that bankruptcy would remove the burden of debt or forced restructuring will.at least put the debtor s in a weaker position.

Maybe that's the plan?

[bluesclues]

That's the point ....if the union forces the co into a long strike....the decision to close and restructure,sell,privatization etc is easy to make...especially if public sentiment is polarized away from the union
Keep in mind that bankruptcy would remove the burden of debt or forced restructuring will.at least put the debtor s in a weaker position.

Maybe that's the plan?

U mean 'becomes justifiable'. So owtu could in this case strike themselves right out of a job. Lol

[Allergic2BunnyEars]

Me thinks if those scenarios were so simple and easy they would have been implemented a long time ago. This isn't the first time strike threats have occurred.

[Redman]

Justifiable is subjective to what one deems as important...Petrotrin is a failed co, with a corruption riddled management,aged assets and a disenchanted work force....but IMHO its a vital asset that we need to retain control of.
So to me its justifiable to keep it.Restructure-yes,lose control of -NO
You have a different view of the future...so it may not be justifiable.
In our minds we both right.(no comments lol )

Easy is absolute-If public sentiment is such that there is little political fall out on a sale-the NUMBERS already are in your favor.
So it is already,on paper a logical decision to privatize....its the political fall out that has prevented that for years.

[Allergic2BunnyEars]

Not sure why you think I don't believe it is justifiable by me asking a simple question or two.

I don't believe it is just politics that prevent the scenarios you guys put forward as simple is all I'm saying.

[Allergic2BunnyEars]

Also it should be noted that bankruptcy does not remove the burden of debt in Petrotrin's case as it relates to the two bonds.

[The_Honourable]

We are not insane, says the OWTU

...not backing down from strike despite public outrage

DESPITE public outrage and a widespread view that the Oilfield Workers Trade Union (OWTU) was being inconsiderate and irresponsible in holding the country to ransom over a wage dispute with the employer, the union has no intentions of backing down in its plan to go on strike.

OWTU president general Ancel Roget said the strike action notice, which will cripple the country's fuel supply, was already penned and would be on Petrotrin's desk, pending the outcome the last day of conciliatory talks expected to go into Tuesday night.

Roget will lead his team to an inter-ministerial meeting at the Ministry of Labour office, St James Street, San Fernando at 1.30pm. Earlier in the day, speaking at a press conference at the OWTU headquarters, Paramount Building, San Fernando, Roget called on the Government to settle the outstanding negotiations to prevent a complete shutdown of operations at the oil company.

The OWTU has requested a 10 per cent wage increase for the period 2014 to 2017. Petrotrin's management, however, has offered zero-zero-zero. The same figures were offered to workers for the period 2011 to 2014. That period is currently before the industrial court for conciliation.

Roget said should the Government fail to settle negotiations, strike notice would be served on Tuesday, shutting down operations at Petrotrin. He said, “We are ready, willing and able. The workers are not mad and insane to call for what everybody got and what they did not get. When we withdraw our labour from the different area well then and only then people will understand the contribution of the workers.”

And he accused Petrotrin management of fooling the nation by saying that there was a contingency plan in place to deal with the strike action. “Management who are saying they have a contingency plan in place, that is not a fact. When it occurs that extra regional market cannot be supplied and when local market cannot be supplied, we hold the Petrotrin management for yet another occasion which management is communicating incorrectly that they have a contingency plan in place. They do not have a contingency plan on any normal day, so how could they have a contingency plan when all of the workers are not there,” he said.

Roget questioned why the Government had not yet responded to the issue, as the economy would be impacted by the strike.

“Why are the Ministers of Labour, Energy and Finance and even the Prime Minister not getting involved in this issue at this point. We find it strange, their silence. We have sent repeatedly, over and over, information to Minister Stuart Young, Franklin Khan, Prime Minister and Minister of Labour these issues and if at this point when we go the meeting this afternoon no adjustment was made, no response was given to the management team - if no message was sent through them to us about what adjustment then we will take it as the Government of Trinidad and Tobago, through its silence, is insisting that the oil worker be further punished,” he said.

Roget said he did not wish to hear the comments of former Government Ministers or past members of Petrotrin's management, as they had failed to turn around the company's financial situation.

Describing as hypocritical, a statement by former Petrotrin chairman, Lindsay Gillette, that the OWTU was holding the country to ransom, Roget said the OWTU had written to the then chairman in Februaru 2011 about restructuring the oil company.

He said: “In February 2011, the union wrote to Lindsay Gillette talking about the restructuring of Petrotrin and need for accountability, autonomy and maximum focus for workers, sharp focus on production issues. So for Lindsay Gillette to crawl out of that rock where he lay under we think it is hypocrisy at best. He had a chance to turn around Petrotrin, the union wrote him and engaged them on many occasion to deal with the restructure of Petrotrin.”

Roget said a letter was also sent to former Prime Minister Kamla Persad-Bissessar requesting a meeting to discuss the situation at Petrotrin. That too was ignored, he said.

And responding to statements by former Energy Minister Kevin Ramnarine, that the company was not in a good financial position Roget said, “We don't want to hear you Kevin Ramnarine at this point. At your turn at the wicket you did absolutely nothing to save Petrotrin.”

Roget said a task force commissioned by former Energy Minister Carolyn Seepersad-Bachan to examine quick win situations at Petrotrin was shut down when she was replaced by Ramnarine. Quick win, he said, was a process of increasing daily crude production by some 4,000 barrels a day, without any major capital minvestment. “We presented that plan to Kevin Ramnarine, then Minister of Energy, which would have seen the Trinmar production increased by some 4,000 barrels of crude. That was not to his best interest and the initiative was shut down. So he struck that plan down and today Trinmar is no better because the management would have followed that instruction of the then Minister.

Roget said the same was presented to Energy Ministry Franklin Khan, who congratulated he OWTU on its initiative. But the trade union was yet to get a response from the Government, he said.

Source: http://www.trinidadexpress.com/20170103 ... s-the-owtu

[Redman]

Not sure why you think I don't believe it is justifiable by me asking a simple question or two.

I don't believe it is just politics that prevent the scenarios you guys put forward as simple is all I'm saying.

i didnt see you post until after i posted mine....we all speculating here ..This is Trinidad...they might give it to CAL to run.

[bluesclues]

Justifiable is subjective to what one deems as important...Petrotrin is a failed co, with a corruption riddled management,aged assets and a disenchanted work force....but IMHO its a vital asset that we need to retain control of.
So to me its justifiable to keep it.Restructure-yes,lose control of -NO
You have a different view of the future...so it may not be justifiable.
In our minds we both right.(no comments lol )

On the contrary, it would appear that our views have aligned here. As i am in favour of restructure. If u could read the clues, as i always provide them. The suggestion to replace management with progressive thinkers would be to allow petrotrin(the state) to expand it's energy portfolio. To redefine salary packages and contract and employment terms in hiring new staff.

[The_Honourable]

Negotiations break down. OWTU to serve Petrotrin with strike action tomorrow!

[dude2014]

Regeta is going to learn the hard way that the MOU they signed with the PNM Govt is really butt wipe on legal size paper. The country already imports petroleum products such as diesel, gas etc.

Growley looking for a foreign investor to take Petrosingh of our hands.

LOL

[Allergic2BunnyEars]

Lol @ dude.

[Allergic2BunnyEars]

Double

[nervewrecker]

Or they might give it to ansa

[GixxerMan]

Or they might give it to ansa

.^This

[The_Honourable]

Or they might give it to ansa

Financiers need to get their election ROI during this downturn... state companies will do.