As energy prices continue to plummet, the Oilfields Workers’ Trade Union (OWTU) is appealing to employers to find alternatives to sending workers home. The statement follows confirmation from bhp Billiton yesterday that it has had to eliminate “half a dozen positions,” two of which are offshore jobs.
This follows the earlier announcement from the bp Group that it planned to cut some 4,000 jobs globally in exploration and production. Nationals are also likely to be among those affected.
The Australian outfit bhp, which is engaged in deepwater operations in T&T, said it was examining its current and future business needs to optimise both staffing and costs and make appropriate adjustments in its global petroleum business.
It also pledged commitment to its ongoing operations and maintaining a platform for future growth opportunities.
Reports first surfaced on Tuesday that bhp had sent home 60 of its workers as the price of oil dipped below US$30. The news met with condemnation from the OWTU and the Joint Trade Union Movement (JTUM), the latter which posed the question: “Who’s next?”
OWTU’s education officer, Ozzi Warwick, said they were deeply disturbed by those reports because the company derived substantial benefits from T&T over the years and found it unacceptable that it would move so swiftly to send home workers in light of falling commodity prices.
Warwick said: “So you could imagine the kind of profits they made because between 2002-2012 gas production went up by some 174 per cent.
“We want to make it clear that no workers should be sent home at this point in time,” he said, recalling Prime Minister Dr Keith Rowley assurance in his recent address to the nation there would be no job losses.
Noting the dismissal of some 200 Central Trinidad Steel Ltd (Centrin) workers on Monday, he urged companies not to use that as an excuse to send workers home. Responding to the global job cuts, bpTT said it would follow the bp Group’s focus to improve efficiency and reduce costs.
BHP’s statement
Today’s petroleum industry is facing extremely challenging market conditions, even by historical standards.
bhp Billiton is examining our current and future business needs to optimise both staffing and costs and make appropriate adjustments in its global petroleum business. We remain committed to our ongoing operations while maintaining a platform for future growth opportunities.
We will achieve this goal through our productivity programme, which is already yielding significant savings, and organisational adjustments to meet the needs of our business. As a result, we will have a smaller, more focused organisation and this has resulted in some employee reductions.
The result of this work is that within the T&T operation, as in company locations globally, some positions will be impacted. Within our operations in T&T, contrary to rumours, up to half a dozen positions will be eliminated, only two are offshore jobs.
bhp Billiton will continue the process of reviewing its business to ensure optimal efficiency.