Construction workers need minimum wages

THE EDITOR: Please publish this following letter to the Ministers of National Security and Labour.

Dear Ministers, can you tell me and the country what is the criteria used for the issuance of a work permit in Trinidad and Tobago? Further, I would like you to investigate how did a manager on the Tobago Plantations housing project at Lowlands obtain his work permit. This project is being undertaken by NH International (Caribbean) Ltd. As far as we are aware, he holds no degree or special skills that are not available in this country. This gentleman is disrespectful to Trinidadians and Tobagonians and appears to be openly disregarding the laws and labour practices of this country. The most recent is his letter to staff telling them that anyone who takes a day off without his permission must produce a medical certificate to him for this day. He has fired a foreman who refused to work in the rain. How can this individual be a project manager in an International company when he doesn’t appear to have any technical background.

Is it because of his mentality and attitude towards workers that he is being used by the company? All he does is walk around the site terrorising supervisors about housekeeping and safety. One cannot hold him down to a technical conversation and all the technical and managerial aspects of the work are being done by locals who are not accorded the same treatment. The Minister of Labour must quickly put together a minimum wage for the construction industry and forget the Chamber President (South) and his committee. Workers are being taken advantage of by these so-called International companies who are using labourers as masons and paying them $ 8 per hour and saying it’s the law. All these workers are producing sub-standard work on what is a multi-million dollar housing project. These workers of a particular ethnic background from Barrackpore never worked in the industry.

The minimum wage for an unskilled worker in this industry should be $12 per hour and $17 per hour for skilled workers who are not unionised. Stop the carnage on the “worker” by these terrorists, all they are concerned about is profiteering by not paying a “fair wage” for a fair days’ pay. To the Government, please distribute the work equitably to all and not just one or two contractors because of political affiliations.

KENNETH DAVID
Scarborough