Labour minister hails wage deal ‘victory’ for collective bargaining

Minister of Labour and Social Relations Colin Jordan has praised the recent wage agreement between the Barbados Workers’ Union (BWU) and KFC, which secured a nine per cent pay increase for employees after months of negotiations, calling it a testament to the strength of the industrial relations system.

Speaking to reporters on Wednesday at the Pride of Barbados Awards ceremony for 11 recipients from the parish of St Peter, Jordan highlighted the importance of collective bargaining in ensuring fair wages and business sustainability.

He said: “Coming to an agreement where both sides agree that this is where we want to go, is always a good thing. Workers need to be able to live, work, eat, support themselves and their dependents; businesses need to earn a profit so that they can be sustainable and continue to employ.

“Collective bargaining is the bedrock upon which our industrial relations system is built, and I want to give credit for the final outcome to collective bargaining.’

Jordan credited the outcome to the strength of Barbados’ industrial relations system: “I think what we have seen in terms of the agreement we have reached is in recognition of the fact that freedom of association and collective bargaining works. We encourage people to bargain, to be reasonable in their asks, and take it into consideration that we are working with human beings. Human beings have certain needs to satisfy in order to be productive, and then productive workers are necessary for business to survive and thrive.”

He further underscored the necessity of fair employment practices, particularly in ensuring job security in response to workplaces exploiting temporary contracts for workers.

“Decent work requires some level of security of tenure,” he said. “There are times when employing organisations or businesses will have a need for people to work for short periods…what we do not accept is for permanent positions, for persons to be put on three-month contracts that keep rotating when you need a permanent full-time person. We don’t accept that.

“We do not accept any exploitation, and the government always works to identify areas of exploitation if we think we see any, and we address [them].”

He added: “I encourage workers to demonstrate the solidarity that is at the core of the labour movement. You come together in your collective, and then you can exercise the rights to speak and bargain for members.”