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The Banking , Insurance and General Workers Union joins the rest of the Trade union movement in condemning outright the dismissal of Ernesto Kezar, President of the Trinmar Branch of the OWTU.

When Petrotrin could fire the Union’s Branch President because he took time off to deliver a letter to the Minister of Energy outlining failures of the management at Trinmar and returned to work right after, then clearly we believe there is more in the mortar than the pestle. We are of the firm view that this dismissal is part of a well-orchestrated plot by the employers and the government to manners the trade union movement so that they can proceed without hindrance to fatten their pockets be it by corruption, privatisation or nepotism.

The attack against the Union’s Branch president comes against the background of a string of other attacks within recent times. These include:

  NP’s failed attempt to decertify the OWTU for alleged industrial action for which the Industrial

Court found that there was no evidence to substantiate the company’s charge against the Union.

  NP’S unjustified dismissal of 68 workers which was reversed by the Industrial Court.

  NP’s persistence to get rid of the OWTU by appealing the judgment of the Industrial Court.

  The attempt to incarcerate the PSA’s President for alleged contempt of a Court Order

  The attempt to decertify the Transport and Industrial Workers Union and the Communications

Workers Union

  T&TEC’s suspension of 30 workers including the Branch President

  TCL’s dismissal of all the Union’s Branch Officers after the strike

  The attempt to decertify the Steel Workers Union

This is certainly not all. The attacks against the unions is aimed at considerably weakening the trade unions so as to facilitate the pauperisation of the workers by coming after their benefits. This explains why the ECA recently proclaimed that “COLA is no longer relevant in Collective Bargaining”. This signals a renewed effort of the employers to remove COLA.

BIGWU therefore calls on all workers to take serious notice of what is really happening and not see these issues as isolated events. In this regard the Banking, Insurance and General Workers Union gives its unconditional support and solidarity to the OWTU and its Branches that are now under attack by Petrotrin and NP. We have no doubt in our minds that the government itself behind these attacks.

Let us therefore prepare ourselves to defend our interests and not wait for the next attack against the Trade Union Movement.

Source: The Banking , Insurance and General Workers Union