JNF-The-Working-Class-Struggle-of-Half-a-Century

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president. When the delegation gave evidence on 22 nd December 1928, a member of the commission asked: With regard to workmen’s compensation I gathered from your memorandum that you want people now exempted by law to be brought within its ambit? Answer: Yes. Question: Have you any idea why domestic servants were cut out of the law and therefore not entitled to compensation? Answer: I cannot answer that; it beats me. Question: Was the question ever discussed in this Island before this act of November 1937 was passed? Answer: Yes, it was discussed quite frequently. Question: Was no exception taken to the exclusion of domestic servants, for example? Answer: Yes, the Workers’ League, as an organisation, felt that the Workmen’s Compensation Ordinance should apply to all workers, not necessarily only to those engaged in manual work connected with machinery. Question: You heard yesterday, if you were in the room, the statement on behalf of the Sugar Investigation Committee that they saw no reason why agricultural workers should not be brought within this Act. Would you agree or disagree with this? Answer: I would agree with that. Question: What would be the next stage to have this Act widened to bring these categories? Answer: To have it amended. Question: Where would the initiative come from - here in the Island? Answer: No. It would have to come from the Colonial Office... In connection with the matters of Workmen’s Compensation, this organisation has made efforts since 1932, by petitions to the Secretary of State for the colonies, and by petitions to the local authorities, and it has only recently been introduced. Here is the correspondence, which may be of interest to you. Question: I shall be very glad to have it for the records of the commission. Report 67
The Commission presented its report in June 1945. Among other things the report mentioned that legislation providing for Workmen’s compensation had been in force in some West Indian colonies, but its effect in practice was still limited. The report continued: Large numbers of workers are excluded from its operation and an unusually long term is prescribed as the period during which an accident must deprive a worker of employment before he is eligible for compensation. In almost all of the West Indian colonies the following persons, amongst others, are not covered by this legislation - persons employed in the agriculture (unless employed in connection with machinery), domestic servants, clerical workers, shop assistants and drivers of motor vehicles. The effects of these exclusions in colonies which are predominantly agricultural, and where many thousands are engaged in domestic service, may easily be imagined, and it was not surprising to find that, in some of the territories, approximately four-fifths of the total working population was ineligible for compensation. We see no valid reason why the laws on this subject should not be made of general application; in particular we regard the inclusion of agriculture within the scope of legislation, with proper facilities for insurance, as a primary and necessary reform. Workmen’s Compensation – Yesterday and Today Every worker was happy in 1937 when the agitation of the St. Kitts Workers League brought about the introduction of first Workmen’s Compensation Law in the Leeward Islands. The right of the workers to receive payment for injuries and loss of life was established. Further agitation was necessary to widen the range of benefits provided by law. The League kept steadfastly at the job. Through the instrumentality of the League the law was amended several times. The last occasion was in August, 1955 when the Legislature of St. Kitts-Nevis-Anguilla enacted its own law which replaced the former Leeward Island Act. 68
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J. N. FRANCE ______________________
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© 2015 Published by The National A
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Preface The Working Class struggle
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1 EARLY VISION Where is this countr
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With the passing of time, social an
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This early attempt at workers' orga
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post as a school teacher to succeed
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For several years the pressure was
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and school houses are being used fo
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housing condition arising from the
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3 PREPARING THE GROUND The thought
Page 25 and 26: That impressive English story told
Page 27 and 28: they had accumulated £28 with whic
Page 29 and 30: Commons that since the colony of th
Page 31 and 32: 1922, some of the members of Legisl
Page 33 and 34: On 30 th August 1932 the Dominica T
Page 35 and 36: country and I regard British Guiana
Page 37 and 38: Mr. Marryshow then raised his tone
Page 39: Delegates to the West India Confere
Page 42 and 43: The conference opened its proceedin
Page 44 and 45: protests can be ignored with impuni
Page 46 and 47: Closer Union Commission widened to
Page 48 and 49: He said it was a privilege to him t
Page 50 and 51: possible, an education that must be
Page 52 and 53: and suffering, and in such a condit
Page 54 and 55: The land forming the Hospital compo
Page 56 and 57: ing able to grant the request of th
Page 58 and 59: prison sentences for what was commo
Page 60 and 61: sinned against the Factory. Theirs
Page 62 and 63: 9 FROM PAUPER RELIEF TO PROVIDENT B
Page 64 and 65: 1954 declared the first Monday in M
Page 66 and 67: it has proposed to interfere will b
Page 68 and 69: Change When the League came on the
Page 70 and 71: Children of the working class. 61
Page 72 and 73: had just dumped out a load of cane
Page 74 and 75: There was no reply from London. Twe
Page 78 and 79: Under the law of 1937 only a limite
Page 80 and 81: Workers who would have benefited fr
Page 82 and 83: Grenada, and will seek to work in a
Page 84 and 85: Ferguson, Chairman of the Commissio
Page 86 and 87: Now let me say in the first place t
Page 88 and 89: We should like to refer to West Ind
Page 90 and 91: in West Indies there is a considera
Page 92 and 93: The 1932 Commissioners commented on
Page 94 and 95: not regard it as essential that the
Page 96 and 97: official news of its adoption by th
Page 98 and 99: gravity of the situation to the att
Page 100 and 101: On 13 th December, 1934 an unusuall
Page 102 and 103: employed by those who demand the ad
Page 104 and 105: concerning the right for the workin
Page 106 and 107: come relief to a grateful people an
Page 108 and 109: vance towards the goal of the Feder
Page 110 and 111: members of the Council. Mr. Marrysh
Page 112 and 113: see no reason why we should be give
Page 114 and 115: Unofficial Majority on the Legislat
Page 116 and 117: tional reform movement in this Pres
Page 118 and 119: combine to give the Closer Union Sc
Page 120 and 121: prominent part in marking the close
Page 122 and 123: when the slaves were set free, and
Page 124 and 125: The people in those days took it fo
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Sugar Factory workers were “chast
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At West Farm the marchers were prev
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Some of the men, it was alleged, we
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gear was damaged and the employees
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Inspector of Police and Magistrate
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H.M.S. Leander arrived in the port
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satisfied that the action taken by
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16 THE FIRST ELECTION The clash of
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opposed to it. The 1936 Constitutio
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important matter, I promise the Ele
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could have no better representative
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whether it was a fact that the St.
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existing, it is not considered that
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17 THE 1938 ROYAL COMMISSION The 19
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A: Any law-abiding citizen over 16
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appeared and presented the case of
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18 A STAKE IN THE COUNTRY Land owne
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culture and Commercial Society. The
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After this, the land would vest abs
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age. In the following month, Januar
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19 MARCUS GARVEY IN ST. KITTS St. K
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When he made man he said, ‘By the
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oil underneath his feet. Englishmen
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is a little four-page newspaper. Yo
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provided the major portion of the e
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which should be paid for the variou
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In April 1969 the Minister of Labou
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21 POWER OF THE PRESS During first
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Commission headed by Sir Charles Fe
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President wrote, The issues are too
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the sea. The effects were terrible
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mendous crowd packed the Mutual Imp
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territory, the success of the past
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the notice, was that employees were
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