MEMBER UNIONS of the Jamaica Confederation of Trades Unions (JCTU) are to meet this morning with Minister of Development, Dr. Paul Robertson, and Minister of Labour and Social Security, Horace Dalley at a meeting at Jamaica House at which their boycott of the Ministry of Labour is expected to be aired.
This meeting had been arranged prior to the boycott of the Ministry of Labour, announced by the JCTU on Tuesday. It was originally planned to concentrate on the possibility of a social contract involving the unions, the Government and the private sector. However, it is expected to be taken up with the issue of the Confederation's boycott, as well.
JCTU vice-president Senator Dwight Nelson said last night, "We expect him (Dr. Robertson) to speak about social dialogue, but we will be putting on the table our dissatisfaction with the Ministry's performance."
The meeting follows last November's talks between the unions and Prime Minister P.J. Patterson, at which the unions requested the opportunity to discuss with Dr. Robertson Government's economic policies and the possible effects on the workers. Dr. Roberts has been actively involved in attempts to forge a social contract with the unions and employers since the 1996, when he was Minister of Industry, Investment and Commerce.
The social partnership was launched by Prime Minister Patterson on February 14, 1996 and meetings between the parties began on February 27 that year. Mr. Patterson had originally given the parties eight weeks in which to conclude the discussions, as he said the pact would affect the Government's economic targets and the Budget that year, but has been unable to get a commitment from all the parties since.
On Tuesday, the JCTU issued a statement saying that the Ministry was incapable of providing the necessary level of assistance to parties engaged in industrial disputes and was merely passing on the disputes to the IDT. They said that they would boycott all meetings at the Ministry, as a result.
The boycott apparently led to the decision of the Jamaica Teachers Association (JTA) not to attend a meeting, which was being planned by the Ministry for yesterday morning, to start conciliatory talks on the dispute between the teachers and the Government over pay increases.
The JTA informed the Ministry yesterday that its representatives would not be able to attend a meeting today, because of a previous appointment. The JTA suggested next week Thursday, instead. The Ministry has not yet set a new date.
Although the association gave a previous commitment as the reason for their request, it was generally felt that they would not have attended the meeting, being a member of the JCTU. The JTA is also expected to be represented at this morning's Jamaica House meeting.
Mr. Dalley said that he had hoped that the JTA would have agreed to the meeting at his Ministry, as there is fear that the protest actions being taken by the teachers could escalate, if the Government does not make an increased pay offer. The Ministry of Finance and Planning has already said that it would not be able to offer more than the 3 per cent, in each year of a new two-year agreement, that it has already offered.
