OWTU predicts cooking gas shortage for Christmas
PORT SPAIN
Trinidad & Tobago Express
Petroleumworldtt.com
17 10 08
THERE will be a shortage of cooking gas this Christmas if the NATPET Investment Company Ltd refuses to pay the LPG filling plant operators more money, president of the Oilfields Workers Trade Union (OWTU), Ancel Roget, says.
"Notwithstanding the attempts of the management to meet the demands of the consumer, we know for a fact that the regular supply would be adversely affected because of the greater demand for the gas during that time," Roget said yesterday.
Roget told the Express that since last Thursday, plant operators at NATPET had stopped working after negotiations for an increase failed. He said even though the company had taken a decision to hire private contractors, NATPET was located in the back of the NP station in Sea Lots and was exposed to all the dangerous elements such as crime and pollution.
"So anybody they get would be untrained, because many people do not know how to handle the equipment, therefore the public would be at risk," he said.
However, he said the OWTU would be willing to negotiate once the company came up with an offer that was better than eight per cent over three years.
Meanwhile, gas distributors across the country have complained that they are already experiencing the shortage.
"Since last week Friday we have not received any gas because workers at the LPG filling station put down their tools and stop working," distributor Bobby Maharaj said.
Maharaj, director of Lutchman Maharaj and Son's NP distribution centre, said customers have already started accusing them of "hiding the gas".
"My 100-pound truck went to get gas last week Friday and it waited there all day only to return empty," he said.
Maharaj, who sympathises with the workers for an increased salary, said he hoped NATPET would resolve the issue soon because dealing with gas was a serious business.
Contacted for comment yesterday, NP corporate communications manager, Caroline Ravello, said the strike action would not affect the distribution of the gas this Christmas.
"We anticipated the strike action and have therefore implemented a contingency plan to hire contract workers to fill in for the operators because we have a responsibility to ensure the customer's demands are met," she said.
By
Aabida Allaham from Trinidad
Express
-aallaham@trinidadexpress.com
Trinidad
Express
Friday, November 14th 2008
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