( left - right ) ROBERTS and HILL
In a Letter to The Editor
AUBYN HILL'S article in the Gleaner of Wednesday, May 18, expresses one of the two antipodal views about globalisation and competitiveness. Essentially it argues for the removal of those 'impediments' which would serve to free-up the market, and allow for businesses to restructure for efficiency and growth. The impediment here is not restricted to the Employment Termination & Redundancy Payment Act seen as a burdensome cost to employers but would include payments associated with the Maternity Leave Act, the Holiday with Pay Act, and other costs related to those social legislations which were passed in the 1970s to provide social protection benefits to the Jamaican workers.
There is an important philosophy inherent in this school of thought, and one that is critical for us to understand, since it carries with it certain notions about capital, labour and the sociology of work. It is based on a predilection that the greater efficiency and growth of the company is best achieved through the 'price auction model', where labour is bought and sold at the cheapest price.
What we quite often have to remind ourselves is that this is by no means a new philosophy. It has been with us for hundreds of years, and evidently accommodated in views expressed at different times, in different periods of our history to justify and support the existing modes of production. Whatever the arguments have been over these years, reduced to their innermost, they basically see labour as a factor of production to be bought and sold in the marketplace.
In quick reference, the antecedents to this new phase of globalisation can be found in the mercantilist era of the fifteenth century where plunder and conquest became a feature of European trade.
SLAVERY
The need for market access and profit maximisation found justification in slavery, colonialism and neo-colonialism, where such economic systems were supported by ideas and beliefs that tended to give moral approbation to the prevailing social and economic relationships. Labour was seen as a commodity, a factor of production to be owned and exploited.
It is evident that because those economic and social relationships were never anchored in the principles of equity, social justice and human rights, that the flashpoints of rebellions have come to be seen as the midwife of human progress, not only here in the Caribbean, but indeed, all over the world.
This new phase of globalisation in its monopoly form has been the subject of many studies and research. The overwhelming conclusion has been that as a social and economic system, globalisation has served to widen the disparities between the rich and the poor; increase the levels of unemployment and create precarious forms of employment practices; has increased the risk of social exclusion, resulting in the immiseration of the working population.
It best expresses itself in the belief that wealth must be shifted from the poor to the rich, so that there can be increased investment inflows and job creation in order that the majority of the population can benefit from the trickle down effects. As a precursor to achieving this the following normally occurs:
The de-unionisation of the labour force to remove any impediments to capital mobility;
Reducing public expenditure for social services;
Deregulation, to allow market forces to act as a self-regulating mechanism;
Changing the perceptions of public and community good to individualism and individual responsibility.
The failing trends of globalisation for the vast majority of the world's population are the result of deep-seated and persistent imbalances in the current workings of the global economy. These rules are based on market-oriented measures where financial and economic considerations have consistently predominated over the social aspects of human development, and where no efforts are made to achieve coherence between economic and social objectives.
MULTILATERAL LENDING AGENCIES
It is precisely because of the one-sidedness of this globalising trend that international institutions like the ILO and the World Bank have taken up the cudgel of leadership to advocate for those human rights and social justice considerations which Michael Manley had the foresight to put into law nearly 30 years ago. In fact, it is because of the dangers multilateral lending agencies, such as the IMF and the World Bank see in failing to "place the needs and aspirations of ordinary people at the centre of the rules and policies" governing world trade, that they have belatedly joined the campaign for human and trade union rights.
The Greek philosopher Aristotle was correct in saying that "the weak are always anxious for justice and equality. The strong pay no heed to either." Trade unions, far from being big business, are the guardians of the principles of equity, social security and justice, and stand firmly on the side of the weak and vulnerable in our society.
IMMUTABLE PRINCIPLES
Mr. Hill, therefore, needs to be told that the notions of equity, justice and human rights, must not always be measured and calculated as costs to be avoided; they are immutable principles which not only reinforce human dignity, but recognise the importance of social protection and economic development as mutually reinforcing.
Certainly, the importance of the dignity of labour, may be a lesson well learnt by the British from their colonising experience, for in their Employment Rights Act, 1996, under Section 52 (1), provisions are made for employees, who are given notice of dismissal by reason of redundancy, to be permitted by his or her employer to take reasonable time off with pay, during the employer's working hours to look for new employment, and make arrangements for training for future employment.
Their statutory maternity pay (SMP) is up to 26 weeks, and women have the right to time off with pay for ante-natal care.
NO EMPIRICAL EVIDENCE
Here in Jamaica there is of course no empirical evidence to show that redundancy payments are a deterrent to business growth. In fact, most of the companies in the financial sector which underwent massive redundancies and restructuring have boasted about improved productivity, efficiency and profitability over the years. We know, however, that there are many companies which would prefer not to pay any redundancy, maternity or sick leave benefits to their workers, and any payment of this nature would for them be described as burdensome.
The school of thought which advocates 'a race to the bottom' deliberately overlooks the social dimension of globalisation. Social security and income protection issues are ignored, because it is not people but profit which is the overriding preoccupation.
LABOUR LEGISLATIONS
Happily, the Michael Manley administration of the 1970s understood the importance of the value of labour, and advocated a kind of political morality which centred on equality, social justice and egalitarianism. These concepts now resonate with the World Bank and the ILO and support the need to have maternity leave and redundancy payments to workers.
Without these labour legislations, this country would be worst off socially and economically. The trade unions would never allow this country to return to the dark days of labour exploitation, and so will continue to expose the fallacy of the price auction model.
The experiences of many companies have validated the concept of decent work as enunciated by the ILO and point to a sustainable development model through the balance of economic factors and social considerations. This is why the redundancy payment act, the maternity leave law and all those progressive social legislations are relevant to social and economic stability and will be vigorously defended.
Danny Roberts is
vice-president of the National Workers Union. Email:
strebordee@yahoo.com.
