Preliminary document for discussion
National Legislations. Execution of Models by Country
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- 3.4. National Policies and Action Being Taken To Give Effect to the Regional Norms
3.3. National Legislations. Execution of Models by CountryThere is some degree of unevenness in the application of the regional labour standards.(see Annex 4) In some of the larger economies there will be little need to change some of the existing legislation to give effect to the principles. Freedom of association is perhaps the universal basic labour standard shared by all the member states, at least in statute. To give further effect to this right countries have in place legislation dealing with the right of trade unions to exist. Thus all have some sort of trade union Act. The majority of states have legislation for the recognition of trade unions for the purposes of collective bargaining. One notable exception is Barbados. Yet interestingly, as the detailed country study reveals, the absence of legislative provision for the recognition of trade unions has not affected the practical application of the regional norm relating to the right to collective bargaining. The right to strike does not really exist as such in most of the countries. Rather, there is a freedom to strike, which basically means that workers can withdraw their labour without legal penalties. However, there appears to be this right in Guyanese legislation and Bahamian statutes. In the Bahamas for there to be an exercise of this right there has to be a secret ballot. This is the direction that the employers in Jamaica and Barbados are suggesting that the legislative changes should take. The move is to check or eliminate ‘wildcat strikes’. With the exception of Barbados and St. Vincent there is a formal three-tiered system of dispute resolution which ends with arbitration or reference to an industrial court. It is of consequence that in all of the countries where there is an industrial court/tribunal the minister responsible for labour has some independent discretion in referring disputes for determination. Despite the ILO’s Committee of Experts’ (CEACR) opposition to this approach, there seems to be a national consensus on this issue, given the small vulnerable nature of their economies. Anti-discrimination legislation exists more as equal pay remuneration than widely incorporative. The Bahamas, Grenada, Belize and Guyana have recent laws which address equal pay for work of equal value, while Trinidad and Tobago’s statute focuses on all types of discrimination. Jamaica still needs to amend its legislation to address work of equal value. There is no legislation to deal with racial discrimination in Jamaica. The Anglophone Caribbean countries all have the same basic position regarding forced labour. Move is afoot to amend the national legislation to address the problem ‘de jure’ (not ‘de facto’) of forced labour due to the colonial legislation dealing with employment on merchant ships. Haiti is perhaps the outlier in this regard and needs to bring its practices in conformity with the norms. At least 11 countries have passed legislation allowing for the free movement of University graduates. However, very little has been done to allow for other categories of workers to do so. Notwithstanding this, the Organization of Eastern Caribbean States (OECS) comprising, the small nations of Antigua and Barbuda, St. Kitts and Nevis, Dominica, St. Lucia, Grenada, and St. Vincent and the Grenadines, have been making progress towards this end. There is more free movement among nationals of these countries than within the larger CARICOM. Given the number of years over which the draft legislations have been developed as well as the dialogue which led to them, it is felt that the time taken to adapt the local statutes to the model laws is too long. 3.4. National Policies and Action Being Taken To Give Effect to the Regional NormsOn the whole there is a general movement among the member states to bring their national labour standards in concert with the regional standards. In many of the countries there is existing statutory provision in the national constitution to ensure the right of freedom of association. In fact all constitutions in the region have provisions giving effect to the right of freedom of association. In every English-speaking country and Suriname, there is a labour advisory council or committee (LAC). It is tripartite in composition and has a mandate to provide counsel to the Minister of Labour on labour matters, with the intention of instructing policy. In some countries such as Barbados, the LAC is very active and functional and its comments are taken into consideration. Grenada and the Bahamas have reasonably functional bodies. Jamaica’s LAC has existed for years and has contributed to the passing of recent amendments to the LRIDA. However, there appears to be some degree of disillusionment among both employers and trade unions as to the zeal of the government in making the necessary legislative changes. It is not known how active Haiti’s tripartite body is and there may be the need for further investigation. Nonetheless, the fact that all the countries, except The Bahamas, which is a member of the community but not the CSME, have agreed to the full implementation of the regional labour contents including the free movement of labour by 2005, it is anticipated that the national policies will be sped up to give effect to the regional accord. It should be noted that Haiti is a member of the community but has not become a signatory to the CSME. Thus, it does not have the same types of obligations as the Anglophone countries and Suriname, which are fully committed to the common market. A pivotal role is being played in the region by the ILO’s Programme for the Promotion of Management-Labour Cooperation (PROMALCO). All of the full member countries, as well as The Bahamas are participants in this venture. The participation in PROMALCO is also tripartite and is heralded as the ‘high road towards productivity.’ The programme is well supported by the trade unions, employers and governments in the member states. Other countries involved include, the Cayman Islands, Virgin Islands and other non-CSME members as well. Download 475.12 Kb. Share with your friends:
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