Two hundred and eighty-five Unilever workers may soon be without jobs.
Yesterday the workers staged a protest outside the company’s headquarters in Champ Fleurs, as they got wind that the company planned to send home workers as part of a restructuring exercise.
Branch President of the Oilfields Workers’ Trade Union (OWTU) Earl McEachnie said the company has not been honest with its workers about the security of their jobs. The OWTU is the trade union that represents the rights of the workers. He said after receiving information that the workers will be sent home, he met with the senior management to discuss a way forward. In the meeting, the company revealed that they were looking at restructuring options but that no decision was made.
In a press release issued by Unilever Caribbean Ltd, the company states “At this point no decisions have been taken on the future path of the company and work continues as usual”. But McEachnie wants the company to consider retrenchment options as he believes the company plans to get rid of their manufacturing sector. He said though, that if this was the case, the company must address workers’ pensions and financial compensation for those employees who were injured while working at Unilever.
In the release, Unilever said it needed to review its operations, “in the context of a weak domestic economy and a challenging global environment”.
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