(Trinidad Guardian) Unilever Caribbean Ltd (UCL) will retrench about 108 employees from its manufacturing division effective July 31, 2022.
Unilever Caribbean Ltd’s OWTU representative Neil Mc Eachnie confirmed the move yesterday.
“It will essentially be all of the unionised staff and I believe it will also affect a couple managers, particularly those associated with the manufacturing operation,” Mc Eachnie said.
He said while the retrenchment is something that “nobody wants, it is something we have come to accept.”
In a previous interview with Guardian Media in March this year, Mc Eachnie said the move had been expected since 2019, when over 250 workers were retrenched following restructuring at the company.
A statement issued yesterday said with the company’s third-party supply agreement set to end on July 31, UCL has issued notices of retrenchment to its employees from the manufacturing division.
It explained that after Unilever sold its Spreads business in 2018, UCL, as part of its restructuring exercise, entered into a four-year supply agreement with a third party.
The statement said this arrangement was the result of exhaustive analyses of the current operations and various restructuring strategies.
“Now that the supply agreement has expired, the company, unfortunately, has no option but to let go the employees of the manufacturing division,” the statement added.
It said before instituting this retrenchment exercise, UCL engaged in extensive consultations with the OWTU, the recognised majority union for workers employed by the company.
“These in-depth discussions were meant to reach a mutually agreeable outcome, if at all possible, in the interest of all parties, especially the affected workers,” the statement added.
It said the company will continue to prioritise the safety of all personnel, plant and equipment and will continue to actively pursue the well-being of the people and the operations of the company. UCL will abide by and operate in accordance with all legal obligations in all matters relating to this decision, it added.
The company expressed its deep appreciation for the service and contribution made by its employees over the past years.
