PORT OF SPAIN, Trinidad (CMC) — Venezuelan migrants may soon be given the opportunity to be employed as the government is seeking to amend the Recruiting of Workers Act.

This is according to the president of the National Trade Union Centre (NATUC) Watson Duke.

“There is a law they are going to amend just now called Recruiting of Workers act. It is an important act. The act will see our Venezuelan brothers and sisters choreographed and placed into groups under recruitment agencies,” said Duke who was speaking on Thursday at a Labour Day rally.

According to Duke, the Venezuelans will be given jobs at a lower rate of pay.

“When they fail to amend the Retrenchment and Severance Benefit Act, Industrial Trade Union Act, Industrial Relations Act, the Trade Union Act, the Maternity Act, the Minimum Wages Act, Occupational Health and Safety Act and a number of other acts, they want to amend the Recruiting of Workers Act 1939. That is to ensure they can bring our brothers and sisters from Venezuela into work at peppercorn rates.”

The Newsday newspaper quoted Duke, who is also president of the Public Services Association, as saying that migrant workers are being exploited around the world.

“In the UK they are being exploited. They have little or no rights. This is what the government is about to do, mark my words…”

Duke, who is president of the Progressive Democratic Patriots, also urged the workers to stand up and fight back and revealed that he decided to enter politics to represent workers on a grander scale.

He said the PDP will launch its campaign for the 2020 general elections and 2021 Tobago House of Assembly election within the coming months.