CONTACT Magazine (Vol.19 No. 2 – June 2019)

Voice of business
the voice of business on. . .
Labour relations
What is your view of the current labour relations climate
in Trinidad & Tobago? How can it be improved?
The current labour relations climate is a challenging one. We are still
seeing a lot of issues where trade unions are difficult to work with. In a
stagnating economy such as ours, it is an especially difficult time for labour,
and unfortunately unions still deem the employer an aggressor, which creates
an increasingly volatile situation.
Reyaz Ahamad
President, Trinidad & Tobago Chamber
of Industry & Commerce;
Executive Director, Southern Sales
and Service Company Limited
For years the Chamber has advocated
for a balanced judicial composition
of public and private sector
representation in the IR court
Recent examples, such as the restructuring exercises at Petrotrin and TSTT,
demonstrate the need for a more conversational approach to industrial relations,
where the employee and the employer work together to resolve matters. The
world of work is changing, and nearly every sector in Trinidad and Tobago
has evolved and modernised. We need a more robust industrial relations
environment in keeping with this.
The climate can improve if workers and employers have more discussion
on how to move forward. Too often, stakeholders perceive that the employer is
being unfair, but we need to examine the entire industry that we are operating
in and consider what is reasonable and unreasonable.
There is too much of a strong divide, so I hope to see the aggressive approach
of the labour unions change, and the industrial court embrace a more holistic
approach as we move forward.
We are also working with an Industrial Relations Act that is over 46 years
old. This needs to be overhauled to align with global best practice. For years the
Chamber has advocated for a balanced judicial composition of public and private
sector representation in the IR court, so we welcome the recent appointment of
new judges, and look forward to seeing how the climate will continue to evolve
in Trinidad and Tobago.
We are also working with an Industrial
Relations Act that is over 46 years old.
This needs to be overhauled to align
with global best practice.
22 JUNE 2019 chamber.org.tt