It is reported that 85 workers of Caribbean Steel Mills will soon be on the breadline as the company has decided to stop manufacturing steel products. A date for the closure of the company has being discussed with Oilfield Workers Trade Union.

CSM said that that "After 37 years in the steel manufacturing business, manufacturing operations at Caribbean Steel Mills Limited will be discontinued. Like many other manufacturing concerns in T&T, it has suffered the effects of the significant slow down in the economy. Two further critical factors have impacted negatively on CSM. Firstly, the price of raw material, together with conversion costs to finished goods, exceeds the landed costs of imported finished goods. Secondly, sales have decreased by as much as 55%. As a result, CSM's manufacturing business cannot be re financed. As such, operations are not economically viable in today’s market place. Accordingly, the company must discontinue manufacturing with the unavoidable result of having to make its workforce of approximately 100 redundant."

CSM said that it will comply with its obligations under the redundancy laws and will work with the OWTU to reduce the effects of the retrenchment. Among the products CSM made were rebar, de-formed high tensile steel, metal window and door frames, tubes for the metal furniture industry, roofing sheets, floor decking and other roofing materials.

(Sourced from www.guardian.co.tt)