Duke: Government using slave master tactics to control OWTU

PRESIDENT of the Public Services Association (PSA) Watson Duke yesterday criticised government for what he described as its attempts to control the Oilfield Workers' Trade Union (OWTU) in the aftermath of Tuesday's decision to close state-owned oil company Petrotrin and terminate 2,500 workers.

Speaking with Newsday, Duke said government's decision to keep few workers after retrenching more than 2,000 workers was similar to slavery-era tactics to control slaves and maintain discipline on plantations.

Citing the practices of colonial-era plantation owner Willie Lynch, Duke said the government was keeping a few workers to pacify the trade union and its supporters. He said the decision was of concern to him and other public servants and believed it would impact the psyche of the public service.

"Government took one of the strongest trade unions and made an example of them. They have whipped the life out of the OWTU and said they are still going to re-employ some of these workers, so all is not lost and some people are buying into it. But the government is nothing more than a Willie Lynch dressed up in modern guise.

"Government must come up with a practical way to demonstrate how less workers will guarantee the success of a company. We have to stop looking at it as excess workers and put some of these workers and make them part of the company's strategic objectives."

Asked if he was concerned that similar retrenchment could happen in the public service, Duke said while there has been attempts to retrench large amounts of workers, he was committed to standing with all public servants and said he would be prepared to fight the government if such a decision was taken.