Roget: They want to destroy union

"THEY tried to cut the head in the hope they could destroy the Oilfields Workers’ Trade Union," said the union's president general Ancel Roget, in response to being terminated from Petrotrin.

Roget has been employed with Petrotrin for the past 17 years,. Last week Tuesday his termination letter and severance package were delivered by courier service to the union’s headquarters on Circular Road, San Fernando.

Roget, confirming his termination to Newsday a short while ago, said a letter to general secretary of the OWTU, Richard Lee, was also delivered the same day.

“When you want to destroy something, you cut the head off, and that is what Petrotrin attempted to do," he said.

"We are still before the Industrial Court on the issue of the industrial relations offence complaint we filed against the company on terminating the workers. We had asked them to cease the issuance of such letters.

"Instead, they showed their high-handedness by firing the leader of the trade union who brought the complaint.”

Roget, who was based at Trinmar when he started off with the company, told Newsday he did not open the package, but delivered it to Douglas Mendes, SC, who is lead attorney for the union in the matter before the Industrial Court.

He also confirmed to Newsday that the majority of the unionised workers have been sent termination letters.

Two weeks ago, Petrotrin began calling in its senior employees and handed them termination packages as it seeks to close down refinery operations at Pointe-a-Pierre.

This was followed up with refinery workers. Some 800 such employees have collected their letters thus far.