Venezuelan oil worker dismissals top 5,000-report

www.forbes.com Reuters, 01.28.03, 4:17 PM ET  

CARACAS, Venezuela, Jan 28 (Reuters) - The number of Venezuelan oil workers who have been fired from their jobs topped 5,000 on Tuesday and will keep rising as the government steps up its attempts to break an eight-week-old strike that has crippled the world's fifth largest oil exporter, the state news agency said on Tuesday.

The total was 2,000 more than the previous estimate given on Sunday by President Hugo Chavez, who has vowed to break the general strike, which has involved state-owned Petroleos de Venezuela (PDVSA) rather than negotiate early elections in the bitterly divided country.

The official Venpres news agency quoted PDVSA chief Ali Rodriguez as saying the number of dismissals for dereliction of duties had reached 5,111 and would continue to rise.

The company had 37,000 employees before the strike, which began Dec. 2.