Approximately 500 workers retrenched from TSTT
The state-owned Telecommunications Services of Trinidad and Tobago Limited (TSTT) announced the reduction of 468 workers as part of a restructuring exercise.
“The need to restructure TSTT is urgent and critical, necessitated both by the impact of challenging economic conditions brought on by the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic and the drastic effect of changes in technology on the company’s operation and performance,” the company said in a statement.
But the Communications Workers Union (CWU) said it intends to challenge the move claiming that the telecommunications company had broken the law.
“The union has been informed today that 376 of our members will be retrenched effective tomorrow …we just want to indicate we are not surprised by the retrenchment; we are surprised, however, that the company has blatantly flouted the laws and not giving people the 45 days notice and effectively fired them almost immediately,” said CWU President General, Clyde Elder told reporters.
“We will not allow that to go unnoticed; we are seeking legal release through the courts for that breach of the law,” he said, also adding that the union is planning a demonstration for Friday.
In its statement, TSTT said that of the 468 retrenched workers, 403 comprising a mix of junior and senior staff and Estate Police officers will, in keeping with the Collective Agreements with their representative unions, each receive payment in place of the regulatory 45 days’ notice.
It said that on January 17, this year, TSTT invited its employee representative unions to consultations regarding the proposed restructuring and refinement of its operating/business model.
“Consultations with employees and the representative majority unions, including the Communications Workers Union (CWU) and Estate Police Association (EPA), began on February 1 and were conducted in good faith and in line with best Industrial Relations practice,” TSTT said, adding that the meetings were held virtually and by exchange of communication on matters related to the need for change, the rationale for the proposed structure, and its staffing.
TSTT said that in the financial year ended March 31, last year, its revenue fell by TT$453 million (One TT dollar=US$0.16 cents) or 18 per cent less than the prior year.
It said that this material decline was partly due to issues related to the COVID-19 pandemic and a combination of economic and technological factors, both unique to the Trinidad and Tobago market as a direct result of the global digital revolution in the telecommunications industry.
TSTT said regionally and internationally; networks are under pressure: internet traffic is growing exponentially, but the price per gigabyte is declining almost as rapidly. The result is downward pressure on revenue growth and margins.
“Given our challenges, TSTT has no option but to restructure to remain competitive. We are moving to an operating model that is more in line with industry benchmarks and will enable us to adapt and evolve with the constant developments in technology. This is our only option if we are to return to sustainable profitability,” said TSTT chief executive officer Lisa Agard.
She said in devising the new organisation, TSTT leveraged the model of “customer journeys” to envision what a new, streamlined, customer-obsessed organisation could look like post-restructuring. “TSTT believes that it has developed a dynamic and visionary future-state organisation that leverages the significant Capital investments that the Company has made in the technology areas, leading to its networks being at today’s cutting-edge level and able to support growth in the foreseeable future.”
TSTT said the restructuring exercise is expected to result in a more efficient, customer-focused and modernised organisation.
The government has a 51 per cent controlling share in TSTT, with the remainder being held by Liberty Latin America, which owns FLOW and Cable & Wireless Communications. Liberty Latin America became the owner of the 49 per cent stake in TSTT when it completed the acquisition of Cable & Wireless Communications (CWC) in May 2016 for US$5.3 billion. It has since indicated its intention to divest its shares.
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