Beware of private agendas

THE EDITOR: It is good to see that good sense has prevailed and the workers on the Atlantic LNG site have gone back to work. After ten weeks of hardship, with considerable losses to the national economy and different interest groups, the recalcitrant minority of workers who were holding everyone to ransom, finally saw the light. It is to the credit of Atlantic LNG, Bechtel, and the efforts of Dr Lenny Saith that the situation did not get totally out of hand. But the national community should look behind this strike and determine whether such actions are any good for the interests of Trinidad and Tobago.

It is amazing that a handful of workers could get away with threats and acts of violence against more than 90 percent of their colleagues who wanted to return to work much earlier. Hats off to the contractors who bore the brunt of the losses, for putting the country in the correct light with respect to their workers who had accepted Bechtel’s and ALNG’s counter proposals and were willing to return to work, but could not do so because of the threats against them and their families. While I have no problem with workers on any project or company getting together for better wages and improved working conditions, I want to warn them that they should not allow themselves to be used for other people’s agenda.

The commendations showered on OWTU’s David Abdulah by ALNG worker representative, Ernest Thompson, poses a lot of questions. We have to ask ourselves what is the real motive of the OWTU in this matter? From my information, at the outset the OWTU “advisers” were advising Mr Thompson to “go for the long haul” and hold out for more than what the initial dispute was all about. The OWTU’s agenda was to “break Bechtel and ALNG” and to teach the conglomerates a lesson in worker power.

By no means must we allow any company, foreign or otherwise, to reap ridiculous profits from the efforts of our people. But at the same time, we have to ensure that we do not become greedy and kill the golden goose. All the foreign companies that operate in Trinidad and Tobago have made considerable investments, and expect comparable returns on their investments. We have to ensure that the balance is right. Let us hope in the future that workers will negotiate in good faith and not allow themselves to be used by people with agendas other than their own.

JAMES CALLISTE
Santa Flora