Labour Ministry’s challenge is...

CARICOM Declaration of Labour and Industrial Relations Principles outlines the general labour and industrial relations policy to which the CARICOM states aspire. The Declaration was informed by ILO Labour standards (Conventions and Recommendations) and reinforced these standards relating to:

freedom of association, collective bargaining, non-discrimination in employment and occupation, employment policy, labour administration, industrial dispute settlement, consultation, and tripartism.

The Universal Declaration of Human Rights, 1948 of the United Nations

Article 23 states that:

1. Everyone has the right to work, to free choice of employment, to just and favourable conditions of work and to protection against unemployment.

Everyone, without any discrimination, has the right to equal pay for equal work.

Everyone who works has the right to just and favourable remuneration ensuring for himself and his family an existence worthy of human dignity, and supplemented, if necessary, by other means of social protection.

Everyone has the right to form and join trade unions for the protection of his interests.

The Challenge for the Ministry of Labour.

Given the continuing adversarial nature and practice of industrial relations by the parties, compounded by political, partisan interests, and the exploitation of ethnicity, the compelling challenge and responsibility of the Ministry of Labour (and the relevant government agencies), the social partners and civil society, are to transform the industrial relations climate from an adversarial model to a consensus-based model through sustained social dialogue, tripartism, and partnerships which can lead to national social accords for national economic and social development.