WATER CO. DOWNSIZING.

Grenada's National Water & Sewerage Authority (NAWASA) says it is proceeding with a plan to retrench one-third of its workforce despite resistance from the Technical & Allied Workers Union, which represents the company's workers, reports CANA (May 28, 1998). NAWASA plans to lay off 96 of its 294 workers over a six-month period as part of an overall restructuring of the company:

. In a letter to NAWASA, the TAWU warned it would "respond accordingly" if the company went ahead with the retrenchment, without following the "procedures laid down in the industrial agreement". Workers are being encouraged to accept a voluntary retrenchment package totaling more than EC$2 million (US$740,000);

. EC$75 million (US$27.7 million) will be pumped into the NAWASA restructuring initiative over the next three years - EC$25 million from the Caribbean Development Bank, EC$34 million from the French Government, and EC$16 million from the European Union. NAWASA in l997 recorded a profit of EC$1.2 million for the first time and management says this is because of the introduction of a water metering system, an increase in the customer base and the implementation of other recommendations of the study. "The increased revenues cannot at the same time sustain the number of workers because NAWASA must now find itself in a higher loan portfolio situation and you need more financing to support these loans," Works Minister Gregory Bowen said.