For the second time in less than a year, media conglomerate One Caribbean Media (OCM) is retrenching workers.
The T&T Guardian understands that the company yesterday issued letters to 33 workers from its newspaper, Trinidad Express, and television station, TV6, informing them to attend meetings on Monday with their union representatives. Sources said the letters were merely a formality, as all those who were served are expected to receive their dismissal letters on Monday.
The 33 employees include 25 workers from the Express and eight employees from TV6. Sources within the company said the move left several of the workers, who were deemed to be redundant, in tears, as many who have decades of years of service were not expecting to be placed on the breadline during the company’s second wave of retrenchment. Some 49 workers from the company’s production department were sent home in December last year. While the workers were aware of the pending retrenchment, many were not informed of the effect on their positions until they received their letters yesterday.
Contacted yesterday, branch president for the Banking, Insurance and General Workers Union (BIGWU) Jamie Phillip said the company’s decision came as a shock, as union officials were of the belief they were still in negotiations with the company over the positions which were selected to be made redundant and the quantity of staff earmarked for dismissal.
As he stressed the need for consultation on the issue, Phillip pointed out that the company was forced to rehire 17 workers initially fired in the first tranche, as it had refused to address issues raised by the union over the ability of remaining staff to adequately handle the increased workload caused by retrenchment.
“This time we told them we would not go through any exercise which is not substantive and fair. They promised us that we would be properly consulted and this time they did not,” he said.
Phillip said he and union officials will be meeting members of staff after the meetings on Monday and will discuss how the union will proceed on the issue.
In a brief telephone interview, Editor-in-Chief of the Express newspapers, Omatie Lyder, refused to comment on the issue.
“It is a sensitive matter and I do not wish to make a comment at this time,” she said.