OWTU: A step in the right direction for workers

THE Oilfields Workers’ Trade Union (OWTU) is backing proposed amendments to the Retrenchment and Severance Benefits Act (RSBA).

In a news release on January 20, the union said it welcomed the government’s commitment to implementing and advancing the workers' agenda.

Speaking at a press conference on January 11, Labour, Small and Micro Enterprise Development Minister Leroy Baptiste announced the upcoming amendments which he said “seek to widen the safety net for retrenched workers.”

He said revisions to the current Retrenchment and Severance Benefits Act 32 1985 will expand who can access severance benefits, and considerations are being made to widen payout margins.

Currently, workers employed for less than one year or up to three years are entitled to two weeks' pay per year of service, while employees of more than five years are entitled to three.

Baptiste said the government is contemplating a revision of three weeks’ pay per year, for employees of one to five years, and a month's pay for employees of five years and over.

He said the definition of redundancy, which currently only includes a surplus of labour, will also be widened to close the legislative loophole taken advantage of by some unscrupulous employers.

"An employer can easily avoid obligations to workers by declaring insolvency, if operations are discontinued or if a company is shut down.

“These activities would have rendered the workers without any recourse under the act. That definition will be changed to include insolvency, receivership and a number of other reasons why you might have some discontinuation of operations," Baptiste said.

Notwithstanding the discontinuation, the worker will in fact have the right to severance benefits under the act, he added.

The OWTU said it and other unions had been working on this agenda three years prior to these amendments.

Adding that it worked with the then-opposition, led by Prime Minister Kamla Persad-Bissessar, to develop an agenda that is designed and aimed at addressing urgent issues plaguing workers in particular, issues related to the act.

The release said, “Central to these amendments is the widening of the definition of ‘redundancy’ to include circumstances arising from insolvency and receivership, and the replacement of the misused ‘surplus labour’ concept with a more appropriate, comprehensive definition of redundancy.”

These changes, the OWTU said, are essential in protecting workers who lose their employment through no fault of their own, particularly in cases where companies close, collapse, or are placed under receivership.

“Of significant importance is the government’s proposal to prioritise compensation to workers. For decades, under the Companies Act, workers, as demonstrated in the case of ArcelorMittal, have been relegated to the bottom of the list of beneficiaries, often receiving little or nothing. At the same time, creditors and other claimants are paid first. The proposed amendments aim to rectify this long-standing injustice by ensuring that workers are prioritised in the receipt of severance and other entitlements.

“Additionally, the OWTU believes the government’s proposal to establish a Guarantee Institution or Severance Benefits Fund, aligned with International Labour Organisation (ILO) Convention No. 173 on the Protection of Workers’ Claims (Employers’ Insolvency), 1992, is a progressive and necessary reform aimed at ensuring workers are paid what is lawfully owed to them.“

The union said it also strongly supports the proposed amendments to retrenchment procedures “which seek to address long-standing abuse by employers.”

“Under these amendments, employers will no longer be allowed to act unilaterally against workers without repercussion, as they will now be mandated to consult all affected workers through formal notices, regardless of number, and to formally notify the Recognised Majority Union (RMU) in all cases, under section 5 of the Act. The amendment of section 7 to explicitly permit payment in lieu of notice, in keeping with regional best practice, is viewed by the OWTU as a major win for workers, as the current legislation often leaves workers with nothing at the closure of a company.”

The OWTU said it welcomes the alignment of retrenchment procedures within the Act through amendments addressing temporary lay-offs which include defining “temporary lay-off” based on judicial criteria, introducing clear procedures for lay-offs, and providing workers with an entitlement to severance after 90 days of lay-off, unless otherwise agreed by the parties.

“The introduction of provisions for the priority rehiring of laid-off or retrenched workers is also a positive development. Consistent with ILO Recommendation No. 166, these provisions allow workers to express interest in re-engagement within a specified timeframe and provide a measure of job security and continuity for affected employees.

”Finally, the OWTU agrees that the current severance formula is outdated and no longer reflects modern wage levels, regional benchmarks, or industry standards and views these proposed amendments as a decisive step in the right direction for all working people in TT,” the release said.

The union said it remains committed to advocating for strong labour protections and will continue to engage constructively to ensure that these reforms are fully implemented in the best interests of workers across TT.