Dear Editor,
Before I got the paper of January 29th, someone called me and asked me if what’s in the paper is possible. I asked what is it about. He told me that TelEm is going to lay off 52 people. I told him that the year just start. It can't be April first already. After reading part of the article to me I told him when I get my paper and read the article I will get back to him.
I personally am not surprised, because I always was of the opinion that there was something not so kosher with the St. Maarten telephone company. For years I have known the telephone companies to be the most reliable government companies. So when I followed the ups and downs of TelEm I wondered and even was surprised that there were no detective investigations, because I know for a fact that telephone companies make money. Because I do not have details, I never mentioned anything in my letters.
I cannot make any comments because I have not been able to read the article. Being replaced by robots. Wow. Years ago when government decided that our salaries would be paid via the bank, I asked some one if government was short-staffed. That person told me “less work for me.” I told her then you should feel for those men who out there digging those trenches. I told her, just like the backhoe is going to replace those men , so the banks are going to cause government to replace you.
It took a few years, but “going on line” was becoming the stop word. Not too long ago I was told by a bamk employee, “If you go online, you are going to save time.” I answered her, “And who would you have to attend to if everybody goes on line?”
It is very sad, but is it not the telephone company that is used for people to be able to go online? Where will online be for those 52 employees?
It is even more sad because while writing this letter to you a person called me and asked me if Anna’s Immigration was going to send home 52 people so that those TelEm workers could get a job? Like I stated before, I did not read the article completely so my comments are limited, but I do not care which government negotiated what with whomever is involved with what is happening at TelEm, but to get rid of 68% of the employees is never good. Who is going to pick up that slack? I have seen commercials in which robots are replacing humans. Are we headed in that direction?
Russell A. Simmons
