LABOUR MINISTRY FOCUSSED ON TRAINING AND OVERSEAS EMPLOYMENT

By: ALECIA SMITH

Minister of Labour and Social Security, Hon. Pearnel Charles (right), speaking with participants in the Ministry’s five-day job recruitment fair, at its opening held at the Ministry’s North Street office in Kingston on September 28.

In what proved to be a difficult year for many Jamaicans who were adversely affected by the ongoing global economic downturn, where at least 16,641 persons have been made redundant to date, the Ministry of Labour and Social Security, in 2009, sought to cushion as much as possible, the effects of the recession.

Throughout the year, the Ministry has been reaching out to persons by continuing to offer training and employment opportunities, with the particular aim of re-tooling and re-skilling individuals who have been laid-off as well as persons finding it hard to secure jobs.

During Prime Minister, the Hon. Bruce Golding’s monthly radio call-in programme, ‘Jamaica House Live’, on Wednesday, March 4, Minister of Labour and Social Security, Hon. Pearnel Charles, had informed of one of the Ministry’s training programmes, which would allow individuals to be multi-skilled, and where traditional classroom training as well as on-the-job opportunities would be offered.

“We first want to let you know that you are not going to be able to go back to the job with one skill. The HEART Trust/National Training Agency (NTA), is willing and is ready to put that skilled worker into several other areas,” he had said.

The Minister had also implored companies to explore creative ways in which they could keep their staff complement, instead of separating them from jobs.

In addition, the Minister had informed that loans were being made available to persons, who have been sent home and want to establish small businesses with their redundancy packages.

The Ministry, during the year, also sought to give practical advice to those persons who have been laid-off. Minister Charles, speaking at the RJR Communications Group’s ‘Yes you Can Survive 2009’ one-day symposium, at the Police Officers’ Club, Kingston on Saturday, March 14, encouraged persons to not merely use the funds to pay off bills, gamble, give it away or “hide it,” but invest it, as the country was in the process of encouraging new entrepreneurs.

Mr. Charles had further informed that the funds generated from the issuing of work permits to overseas nationals were being used to train Jamaican workers, as part of the Government’s initiative to develop the local workforce.

He had also pointed out that the Ministry created a skill bank for all the workers who have been made redundant.

The Ministry’s Overseas Employment Programme also progressed despite the economic challenges. Several workers left the island in 2009, to take on jobs in the United States of America (USA), and Canada.

A total of 42 farm workers left the island on January 29, for New York and Connecticut, in the United States. Another 50 farm workers, went to the US, on March 11, while 16 persons took on jobs at McDonald’s franchises in Canada.

The following month, over 260 Jamaicans also departed for Canada and the United States, to be employed as farm workers, and to work in greenhouses and open farms respectively.

During a meeting with the workers, prior to their departure, the Mr. Charles had said that the Ministry expanded its liaison service in Western Ontario, Canada, as it explores other employment opportunities which could be utilised by Jamaicans. These include skills such as plumbing, carpentry, masonry, electrical engineering, culinary, steel work and automotive mechanic.

The departure, later that month of 45 women, aged 21to 40, to British Columbia, Canada to work as seafood packers, was, according to Minister Charles, an indication of the Government’s commitment to expanding the pool of workers on the overseas programme.

Training programmes were also a feature of the Ministry’s Overseas employment programme, one of which, was launched at the Hilton Kingston Hotel in May. Approximately 50 Jamaicans were trained as Resident Care Attendants, to fill vacancies in Canada, under a project implemented in partnership with the Ministry of Labour and Social Security and Canadian company, Marmicmon Integrated Marketing and Communications.

The training was based on Sprott-Shaw Community College’s academic curriculum, a British Colombian school, that was charged with developing the curriculum and supervising its delivery; Brown’s Town Community College had the task of training the Resident Care Attendants; Marmicmon was in charge of job placement; while the Ministry’s Liaison Office in Canada would help the workers get settled in Canada.

Minister of State in the Ministry of Labour and Social Security, Hon. Andrew Gallimore, at the launch, had informed that the certificates that would be received from the college, would qualify the Resident Care Attendants to work anywhere in the world, noting that the 106 year-old institution is known as one of the most prolific trainers of Resident Care Nurses.

Subsequent to that launch, in September, a total of 197 Resident Care Attendants (RCAs) from Brown’s Town Community College, and Licenced Practical Nurses (LPN) from the institution’s Pre-University School, took part in a five-day job recruitment fair at the Labour Ministry’s Overseas Employment Centre in Kingston, which ran from Monday September 28 until Friday, October 2.

The job fair, which was organised by the Ministry of Labour and Social Security, saw some 28 employers from 14 healthcare establishments across Canada taking part. The employers had conducted interviews and made offers for full-time employment in Canada.

The event was held in partnership with Marmicmon Integrated Marketing Communications, and came out of meetings between Minister Charles and various employers of health service entities across the Canadian provinces of Nova Scotia, New Foundland and Labrador, Alberta, and Manitoba.

Minister Charles had said that of significance, was that this was the first batch of Jamaicans from the health care field, who would be participating in the Ministry’s Overseas Employment Programme. “We have had thousands of Jamaicans going to Canada and the United States (for) short-term jobs (such as) farmers and agricultural workers...we have not touched the Jamaican nursing service,” he had pointed out.

Additionally, with the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU), between the Government and Red River College and the College of the North Atlantic, in May, 60 Jamaicans were trained in hospitality tourism and the culinary arts.

On July 4, 18 culinary workers departed the island for Canada, to participate in an eight-month training programme at the Red River College. The College also trained persons in the field of automotive repair.  An additional group of persons are now being trained as mechanics and will depart early next year for that college.

Minister of Labour and Social Security, Hon. Pearnel Charles, addressing culinary workers during a meeting held at the Ministry’s North Street offices on July 3. The workers left the island on July 4, for an eight-month training programme at the Red River College in Manitoba, Canada.

Legislative Review

The Ministry, for the duration of the year, also embarked on or sought to strengthen certain legislation and policies to enhance the working environment of Jamaican employees.

In February, Minister Charles had revealed that amendments would be made to the Employment Agencies Regulation Act, which governs the activities of employment agencies in Jamaica.

The proposed amendments to the Act included a decision on the maximum fees that an employment agency can charge. The fees for applying for a licence, which is now $10 and the $50 penalty for breaching the regulations, will also be increased to realistic levels, among other things.

During the year, the Occupational Safety and Health Act was drafted, which the Minister had noted would protect the welfare of workers and safeguard businesses by ensuring that employers put the necessary health and safety measures in place.

 The Act came against the background of conditions deemed unsafe by the Ministry’s Occupational Safety and Health Department (OSH) at some 3,000 entities, mainly factories, which it monitors islandwide.

The Ministry’s workplace policy on HIV/AIDS, which is aimed at reducing stigma associated with the disease and protecting against discrimination in the workplace, was also launched this year, and will become mandatory for companies to put in place.

The policy, will provide for support and grievance systems, education, treatment and care, among other measures. The Labour Ministry will have oversight responsibility for the structures to support the implementation of the policy, which will be appended to the proposed Occupational, Safety and Health Act.

On the matter of labour disputes, Minister Charles had announced that his Ministry would be strengthening its conciliation machinery in a bid to reduce the number of disputes being referred to the Industrial Disputes Tribunal.

Speaking at a Labour Advisory Committee (LAC) meeting on Wednesday, July 15, at his Ministry, North Street, Kingston, Mr. Charles had said that the Ministry needed to play a deeper mediatory role in resolving matters before they are sent to the IDT, and that that there was need for a process to reduce, if not eliminate strikes and lock outs of workers during industrial disputes.

Also, in a move to support the promotion of gender equality in the workforce, Minister Charles had announced that the Government is currently reviewing the Maternity Leave Act. Under the Act, women are entitled to leave with pay and protection from dismissal, wholly or partly on the grounds of pregnancy, and the right to return to work after giving birth.

Productivity Levels

On the matter of productivity levels, the Jamaica Productivity Centre’s (JPC) partnership with Japanese product improvement specialist, Makoto Oyama, is expected to put a dent in declining productivity levels which was revealed in Jamaica’s first productivity report, launched on November 5, this year.

Mr. Oyama, who has over 30 years of experience in his field, was assigned to the Centre to provide technical assistance to public and private sector small and medium-sized enterprises, as well as Government entities, over the next two years.

During his assignment Mr. Oyama will be utilising productivity tools to streamline systems and processes, working alongside local productivity specialists.

Mr. Oyama is from the Japan International Co-operation Agency (JICA), an independent administrative institution which contributes to the promotion of international co-operation, as well as the sound development, recovery or economic stability of developing regions.  

The JPC is responsible for promoting and facilitating productivity enhancement at the national, sectoral, industry and enterprise levels.

Mr. Gallimore, speaking at the launch of the Productivity Summary Report 1972-2007, compiled by the JPC at the Labour Ministry in Kingston, had said that it is a call for Jamaican workers to begin maximising their time on the job.

He had further noted that although the report showed productivity levels continuously declining over the 35-year period, “the contents of this document in no way shape or form predicts what we do in the future. That is left to us.”

The report, which provided historical growth rates and levels for value-added output, employment, hours worked, wage rate, unit labour cost and labour productivity, stated that Gross Domestic Product (GDP) grew by only 0.5 per cent between 1973 and 2007.

During that period, labour productivity or output per worker declined at an average annual rate of 1.3 per cent. This annual percentage rate of decline increased to 1.8 per cent between 2003 and 2007.

Meanwhile, at the National Productivity Awareness Week seminar, held on November 11, at the Knutsford Court Hotel in Kingston, Mr. Charles, had called for a production revolution in Jamaica, which he said was needed for the country to achieve sustained growth and development.

Energy Conservation

Further, in doing its part to reduce the Jamaica’s energy bill, the Ministry this year, started its energy conservation programme.

At the launch of the conservation programme, on Tuesday, July 7, at the Ministry’s office, Mr. Charles charged employees to be “managers” themselves, noting that it is better to “cut costs and save jobs, than to cut jobs to save costs” adding that, “conservation on the job means preservation of jobs.”

The Ministry has also set up an energy monitoring steering committee. Among the objectives of the programme is a 15 per cent reduction in energy costs over the next year. The Ministry is also aiming to establish a sustainable energy management programme.

Sharing Database

In the meantime, efforts to create a more efficient work permit system, was realised earlier this month, when the Labour Ministry and the Passport, Immigration and Citizenship Agency (PICA) entered into an agreement to share databases, which would allow for more efficient processing of work permits.

On December 1, at the Ministry, Mr. Charles; Permanent Secretary, Alvin McIntosh; and Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of PICA, Mrs. Jennifer McDonald, signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) for the agencies to embark on the initiative.

Under the MoU, guidelines and time periods for the review and processing of work permit applications will be established as well as a framework for the speedy transfer of data and other information from one entity to another.

The shared database will allow for the tracking of work permit holders, and ensure that employers make provisions for Jamaicans to understudy the skills being brought in by foreigners.

Nurses Wage Deal

Immediately following that event, the Nurses’ Association of Jamaica (NAJ), signed-off on an agreement at the Ministry, under which, the Government is expected to pay out over $430 million additional salaries and allowances to the NAJ.

The new agreement will cover the two-year period, April, 2008 to March, 2010, and became necessary because the NAJ, which represents registered nurses (tertiary trained nurses), did not participate in the negotiations on MoU3, the Memorandum of Understanding between the Government and the Jamaica Confederation of Trade Unions (JCTU) signed in April, 2008.

 The NAJ had been negotiating outside the umbrella of the JCTU since 2006, however, its members will receive the same 15 per cent increase on salaries which was paid to other public sector workers under MoU3. The nurses had submitted a 42-point claim, 35 points of which were agreed upon, including salaries and allowances such as uniforms, meal, taxi and housing allowances.

Minister of Labour and Social Security, Hon. Pearnel Charles, Minister of Health, Hon. Rudyard Spencer, State Minister in the Ministry of Finance and the Public Service, Senator the Hon Arthur Williams and President of the NAJ, Edith Allwood-Anderson were at the signing.

Conference Venue

During the year, Jamaica was also the venue for several regional conferences, covering various areas. In April, a two-day ILO Tripartite Caribbean Conference, was hosted by the ILO Sub-regional Office for the Caribbean, in collaboration with the Labour and Social Security Ministry, the Caribbean Congress of Labour (CCL) and the Caribbean Employers’ Confederation (CEC).

It had explored practical measures for overcoming the social and labour consequences of the global financial crisis, through tripartite consultations and negotiations.

Meanwhile, at the first Regional Pensions Workshop, held at the Half Moon Hotel in Montego Bay, St. James, from October 8 to 9, the matter of aging was discussed, and the importance of pensions highlighted.  The workshop was organised in collaboration with the International Organization of Pension Supervisors (IAPS) and the Caribbean Regional Technical Assistance Agency (CARTAC).

The following month would see the staging of the 9th biennial scientific conference of the Association of Caribbean Occupational Therapist (ACOT) held at the Hilton Kingston Hotel.

The three-day conference aimed to bring together occupational therapists from across the region with other allied health practitioners and suppliers to share information about the latest cutting edge technologies and methodologies in the profession.