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I have been advised that, during the recent CSME launch in Barbados the Labour question held centre stage for a while. During that brief moment the matter of the Abandonment of Labour raised by me by letter was raised.
I am told that Prime Minister Gonzalves’ take on the matter was that Labour does not know what it wants. Prime Minister Gonzalves may consider this to be a true and accurate reflection on Labour. I submit that Professor Gonzalves would never arrive at that conclusion, he nor any other self-respecting political or social scientist in our region.
In the first place it is not a question of what Labour WANTS; it is a matter rather of WHAT LABOUR NEEDS!
To answer this we have to ponder on a number of things:-
- Does the baby who cries, cry because he/she wants to distress the parent?
- Does the sick or otherwise incapacitated patient throw a tantrum necessarily because he/she is capricious?
- Do those who are helpless, most vulnerable socially excluded or societally “Dis-included”: do they not know what they need, simply because most of us don’t want to disturb our personal comfort zones by entertaining their concerns?
If the leaders of the region pause for a while they will find that the matter is not one of knowing what the needs are for the working class of the Caribbean. They know --- sometimes instinctively. It is rather in the articulation of those needs. This springs in many instances from cynical programmes adopted in many territories to divide labour from itself, and to teach a false doctrine that says that success of our families lies totally in the economic success a small percentage of us has gained from the privilege of secondary and university education we have pursued, thanks to the sacrifice of the masses.
It springs from orchestrated efforts made over the last twenty five years particularly to use the said universities to marginalise labour as a force to bring balance into the labour market, and to re-establish the environment of the 1940’s, 50’s and 60’s where the weakness of labour could find support from, and alliance with goverments which admitted that they had sprung from the bowels of that said movement. Thankfully Cave Hill at least is trying to undo that “De-Socialization” which went on or, what I have called that Dis-inclusiveness dogma that was developed.
Over the past ten years the leaders of the region have been aware, more so than ever, that if they were going to be listened to at the decision making tables around the World, they would have to take delegations and present positions which addressed the real economy, rather than the false economy that springs from financial speculation. The Delegations needed to be tripartite, made up of Government, Employers and Workers.
A quick check will show that Governments do attend as they should. Most times they decide they can speak for Employers and, in the Workers’ case, for Labour because as we just heard Labour does not know what it wants.
That weakness of labour is not accidental. Governments, prompted by influential capital, and sometimes because of the wish to exercise their mandate to govern without the challenges of institutionalised bodies, have sought to weaken trade unions in many ways, some quite clever and sophisticated; some barbaric and deserving of our contempt.
The governments, though knowing that strengthening the labour movement to resemble how business is supported, would be advantageous at the UN Development agencies, in the European Funding agencies, as well as at the International Monetary Fund quite clearly seem more interested in following the prescriptions of the World Bank, which though discredited, continues to claim in its “DOING BUSINESS” publications that countries with crippled or muzzled Unions (or better yet with no Unions) are the best ones to invest in.
Governments have been made aware of the need to strengthen Trade Unions locally and through their regional structure, the Caribbean Congress of Labour. Apart from Prime Minister Owen Arthur and now David Thompson, who makes annual subventions, and a three year subvention by Trinidad and Tobago, the total assistance offered was reportedly $100,000.00.
Let governments vote with their feet:
- Empower trade unions with technical support and enabling legislation. I need to develop this in an address to the leaders.
- Provide for training for key trade union officials to develop the Research and other capacity to participate in global dialogue and not merely attend as part of the gallery.
- Encourage inter-union dialogue and joint measures at building capacity at the national level.
- Encourage and provide the means for trade unions to continue to function as independent organisations.
- Discontinue programmes which discriminate against some Unions and divide the national energy.
- Pass enabling legislation to give proper applicability to ILO Conventions 87 and 98, about Trade Union Recognition and the Right to Bargain Collectively.
- Provide for adequate forums in which Trade Unions (and Employers) can regularly share information of national and of regional significance.
- Treat the leaders of the workers with the level of respect which the leaders would demand for themselves. This should naturally be reciprocal.
Workers know what they want. They have disciplined themselves in these times however to pursue their needs. These can easily be summed up in the phrase “Decent Work and Social justice of all”.
Is that asking too much?
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