GTP sacks 139 workers

One Hundred and thirty nine (139) workers of the leading textile company in Tema GTP will be dismissed will take effective first week of December 2016.

The management of GTP communicated their decision in a letter which were given to the affected workers on Wednesday.

Sources within the company told Oman News that some of the affected workers upon receiving their letters collapsed while others wept uncontrollably.

They could not fathom why they should be sent home at the time when Christmas is approaching and the fact that there was rising level of unemployment situation in the country.

When contacted, Mr. Seth Mawuenyagah, who is the Union Chairman of the workers confirmed the decision of the management to Oman News.

He explained that management took the decision based on a new plan to automate the Wax Department of the company, which previously operates under a system called "blocking" so as to conform to the global trend.

He said textile companies across the globe were moving from "manual blocking" to "roller printing" in a bid to cut down cost of production and reduce time constraints in the production chain.

"All over the world, no company is blocking again and management thought it was necessary for us to also follow the pace by investing in automation. As we speak we have five roller printing machines which will do the same work that manual had been doing.

"As a result of the automation, all the workers at the Wax Department have to go because, we also want to be part of the latest technological development," he said.

Asked whether the dismissed workers will be given a package, he said, management had worked out a redundancy package for all those who have been dismissed.

One of the dismissed workers who spoke to Oman News on condition of anonymity noted that their dismissal had nothing to do with automation but the cost of doing business.

He said the executives of the company have been complaining about unfair competition and cost of doing business due to what he described as excessive imposition of taxes by the government.

Story By: Michael Creg Afful

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