OWTU sounds warning about OJT safety at T&TEC

OILFIELDS Workers’ Trade Union vice president Peter Burke said a reported recent directive from T&TEC management to include OJT trainees in groups doing street light and power line repair is putting the trainees’ safety risk.

“No life is worth you pleasing your political masters. No life, particularly lives that have been entrusted to T&TEC for the purposes of training and succession planning.”

He was speaking at an emergency press briefing held yesterday.

Burke said in September 2011 an OJT trainee whose training was incomplete was sent out to work and died while on the job and this led to a modification to protect the OJTs.

“There was always due care and attention to protect their trainees, apprentices during the time of their training.” He said no risks were taken and no lineman work until their training had been completed or they had graduated.

Burke claimed with upcoming elections T&TEC management was rostering OJTs to work who had not yet completed their training.

“Without any lineman training all the trainees would have been asked to report to the public lighting department so that the street lights and playgrounds and so on would be let in the run-up to the elections.”

He suggested an increase in the number of people trained annually to address the staff shortage. He also called for the intervention of Public Utilities Minister Robert Le Hunte to prevent any further loss of life.