Strengthening the Arms of Labour

Under the watch of the Antigua Labor Party, the working class people of this country had a minimum wage that was not adjusted for years, a Labor Code that stood unchanged for over a generation, a Labor Department that was understaffed and under equipped and an Industrial Court that was largely forgotten and neglected. The ALP was actively involved in union busting tactics throughout their administration and passed laws to impede trade union development. It is a fallacy to believe that the regime that worked to stifle the true representatives of the working class would have the capacity to deliver the said working class from oppression.

In contrast, it took a UPP Administration a mere four years to:

  • Increase the minimum wage
  • Enact laws to secure and safeguard the viability of Trade Unions
  • Appoint a committee of stakeholders to revise and amend the Labor Code, allowing it to reflect advances made in labor practices and industrial relations.
  • Provide the Trade Union Congress with annual grant of $25,000
  • Pass laws to safeguard the compensation due to workers where their employers have declared bankruptcy or have closed operations
  • Complete the mechanism for an unemployment grant

The Labor Department
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  • The new UPP Administration will ensure the computerization of the Labor Department in order to improve efficiency in record keeping and procedural productivity.
  • We will recruit suitably trained labor relation officers and inspectors.
  • We will settle the outstanding monies owed to the International Labor Organization of over EC $686,000 – a debt left by the failed ALP regime.
  • By regularizing our status with the ILO, we can supplement our training and educational efforts for staff by once again accessing the resources of the ILO.
  • As apart of our efforts to focus on our human capital, the UPP will revisit the wage scales at the Labor Department with consideration for upward adjustment.

    • The Industrial Court

    The backlog of cases and the lack of technical and procedural advances at the Industrial Court have been the cause of great disappointment and frustration for both employers and employees. The second UPP Administration will secure the technological and human resources required to achieve greater procedural efficiency thereby enhancing the professionalism of the Industrial Court and speeding up the adjudication of disputes.

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