BWU calls for stronger enforcement of labour laws as it marks 85 years

The Barbados Workers’ Union (BWU) on Friday urged the government to tighten enforcement of existing labour laws rather than adding new ones, warning that gaps and inconsistencies continue to leave workers unprotected.

General secretary Toni Moore made the point at the launch of the union’s new website at Solidarity House, as the country’s oldest trade union approaches its 85th anniversary.

The union remains focused on ensuring that its advocacy translates into measurable outcomes for members, said Moore. “So as we march into 85, we continue in fulfilment of our mission to listen to what people really want to see from us and we continue to aspire to deliver it, whatever that is,” she said, adding that the union outlines clear priorities each year so members can assess its performance. “One of the things we try to do is articulate a vision at the top of the year so that our members can also find a way of measuring if our words match our actions throughout the course of the year.”

The union has identified the enforcement of labour laws as a major priority, warning that while Barbados has strong legislation on paper, gaps remain. “Right now in Barbados we have a lot of beautiful pieces of labour legislation. Sometimes these pieces of labour legislation do not always speak to each other,” the general secretary said. Explaining the impact on workers, Moore added, “One piece might have a conflicting or an ambiguous understanding when it needs another piece.”

The BWU has therefore been engaging the Ministry of Labour to close those gaps. “One of our big things is making sure that we are pushing the Ministry of Labour to refine the laws so that that doesn’t happen,” she said.

Moore also pointed to recent engagement with the Labour Department, particularly through the union’s construction campaign. “What we started to do at least towards the last part of the year, successfully using our construction campaign that is ramping up, we’ve been able to get the department committed to strengthening their personnel so that they can be more responsive to us,” she said, stressing that “enforcement, as we indicated at the top of the year, is going to be a big priority.”

The general secretary insisted that the union was not calling for more laws: “The union isn’t interested in seeing the government through the Ministry of Labour roll out more pieces of legislation. We want to make sure that the pieces of labour legislation that are there are working for our workers, because they are not working for workers in all areas.”

Turning to conditions in the construction industry, Moore said the industry is expanding rapidly but standards are uneven. “We have a situation in the country where construction is booming all around,” she said, adding that despite this growth, “the playing field in construction is not level.”

She noted that while some companies comply with the rules, many do not, including firms bidding for public contracts funded by taxpayers. Moore said the union will continue to press for proper health and safety standards and fair pay, arguing that “a fair wage is not a minimum wage when the unionised environment is paying twice that, two and a half times as much.”

The launch of the new website forms part of a broader BWU initiative to modernise its operations and strengthen engagement with members. The platform, which will be rolled out in phases, allows new members to join online, enables grievances to be filed digitally, facilitates the payment of dues, and provides updates on legislation and developments affecting workers. Shop stewards will also be able to document workplace issues through the system.

Safeguards are in place to protect sensitive data and that the site has been designed to be user-friendly and easy to navigate, the union said.