149 workers 'reinvented' out of BP

A total of 149 staff at energy company BPTT will no longer be employed as the company completes its “reinventing BP” process launched in February.

About 47 additional workers will be assigned to roles that support operations outside Trinidad and Tobago. Some of those roles will be international assignments. Frontline staff were not affected by the process.

In a media release BPTT said the restructuring exercise was the largest in its history, with a 25 per cent reduction in staff worldwide.

The exercise was done in two phases. In the first phase, in September, people were allowed to express their interest in leaving voluntarily. In the second phase, between October and November, employees were selected into their new roles and unplaced people were sacked. They are expected to leave in January.

The company said it was “deeply saddened that we are unable to take all of our employees with us on our journey as we reinvent BP."

It said the global environment and changing energy demands meant it had to make "fundamental changes to how we are structured and to our operating model."

It said employees who were leaving would be treated "with the utmost respect, care and dignity throughout the process and are doing all that we can to prepare them as they leave our company."

They and other staff would be given support through its employee assistance programme, the release said.

BP promised the organisational changes would not affect already sanctioned projects and activities in TT.

Those projects would continue as planned "as we remain committed to developing our gas resources while at the same time progressing opportunities to decarbonise gas value chains and develop new, low-carbon business in service of BP’s new purpose and vision."