News

Workers of CLICO and British American Insurance Companies picketed the Central Bank and Ministry of Finance in Port of Spain Trinidad on December 2 and followed this up on December 3 by picketing the CLICO office in the city.

These workers are victims of the takeover of the companies by the State in 2009 in the wake of the crash of the Lawrence Duprey /CLICO empire which threatened to destroy the entire financial sector of the country. The Banking Insurance and General Workers Union, which represents the CLICO workers have issued the following statement on the issue.

In 2009 CLICO/BA came under the direct control of the state/Central Bank for reasons we are all aware of. 

Since then, workers at CLICO/BA have been exposed to abuse by disgruntled clients for reasons not of their making; despite this abuse workers at CLICO/BA have endured and demonstrated unrewarded commitment in pursuit of restoring and maintaining public confidence and financial stability in CLICO/BA. In fact, the reward of workers at CLICO/BA has been one of loss: loss of uniforms; loss of increases in salaries/allowances; loss of confidence by banks/other lending agencies in granting loans to CLICO/BA employees and so on. 
  
Over this period too, the Union and workers would have sought and would have secured written guarantee to have workers’ severance payments honoured, given the stated intention to cease the operations of CLICO/BA and bring into being a new corporate entity – ATRIUS as it is now called. 
  
On May 05, 2013 Minister of Finance, the Honourable Senator Larry Howai, to his then credit, directly addressed and promised workers of CLICO/BA - during a public protest over continued indecision in bringing ATRIUS into being -to expedite all matters related to its formation including ending the anxiety, frustration and agony being experienced by CLICO/BA workers in not being able to properly plan their lives, given the delays and constant changing of dates for ATRIUS to commence operations. 
  
Since then, while ATRIUS has been legally constituted, Board of Directors and all, enquiries to CLICO/BA’s management about an operations date for ATRIUS and payment of severance to workers has been met with the explanation that it is in the hands of the government.