Brothers and Sisters, 72 years after the first significant unification of the labour movement, we face the same circumstances and the same challenges as we did then.
The people of Trinidad and Tobago remain left out in the cold. Those who have jobs are being exploited for inhumanly low wages and under deplorable and unsafe conditions while the government does nothing. Those who want work cannot find employment. Skilled and unskilled local jobs are given to foreigners. It seems it is the policy of the government to keep our people either unemployed and destitute or cleaning drains and cutting grass so that they can fill the pockets of party hacks.
Over the last few years, this government has not only undermined every single institution of this country, but it has orchestrated the systematic dismantling of organized labour. One by one unionized workers have been singled out and eliminated, weakening the numerical strength of the various trade unions. Voluntary separation packages are shoved down the throats of helpless, marginalized workers. Those who have stood silent are now getting their turn. It is late but it is not too late to join hands.
In every sector and in every way the conduct of this government is contrary to the interest of citizens, particularly the working class. Government’s polices are not only anti-labour, but anti-people. Obscene spending and corruption have overheated the economy. Lack of investment and priority in agriculture has led to working people being unable to feed their families as the effects of global issues hit home. The skyrocketing of food prices and the cost of other goods and services are leading to people losing their homes and falling deeper into debt. These effects will take decades to shake off if left unchecked. While they seem to affect singular individuals, the reality is that it is just the approach of the hurricane that threatens to flatten us all.
There is need for reform of the labour laws. The Occupational Safety and Health Act is not fully implemented. The Equal Opportunities Commission which is supposed to be a watchdog against discrimination in the workplace and elsewhere remains impotent. A government that trammels on the rights of a population without provocation cannot be expected to prioritize fixing these things.
This is why all citizens including trade unions and workers must be proactive and vigilant. The people have the power to stop offenses against the population before they occur. The voice of a united population can freeze the government in its tracks, and demand justice when injustice is being perpetrated.
As workers we must pay attention to not just the things that directly affect us such as salary negotiations. Society is interconnected and in some way everything impacts on every single one of us – from business executives to housewives. When someone you do not know personally is put on the breadline or underpaid, you can be affected in several ways, often without knowing it. That person and his family can become a burden on the welfare system which is funded by tax payers. He and his children can end up trapped in a vicious cycle of poverty and crime.
We must be prepared to oppose infractions against our neighbours and brothers. We must be willing to stand with them when they demonstrate and march for better terms and conditions of employment. We must stand by those whom the government and the Ministry of Labour seek to intimidate and silence by refusing union recognition. United we stand, divided we fall.
In the big picture all issues are matters for the labour movement. Mismanagement of the economy and state resources diminish the purchasing power of salaries. This is why trade unions, activists, workers and even the unemployed must keep the pressure on the government to do what is right and to do the things that will bring comfort, happiness and prosperity for those who toil.
The triumphs of the past must be the foundation for our future. Stalwarts such as Arthur Andrew Cipriani, Tubal Uriah Buzz Butler, Adrian Cola Rienzi, George Weeks and countless others, have proven that when the masses unite they are an unstoppable force.
On the occasion of Labour Day 2009 I urge all trade unions to reconsider their respective positions in the unity process. I ask union leaders to consciously revisit their mandates and their roles in this society. And to the general population, “Speak up or you will have no peace.”
Hon Basdeo Panday
Leader of the Opposition
MP Couva North
Chairman & Political Leader, UNC
Wednesday, June 17, 2009.
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