News Categories: Labour

The Ministry of Labour and Social Security wishes to advise the public that a false and erroneous message is being circulated on social media, in relation to workers who worked between 1990-2018 having rights to monetary benefits from the Ministry’s Department of Labour. The public is being advised to discontinue the sharing of this message as it is a hoax.

The message being circulated did not originate from the Ministry of Labour and Social Security.

Employers and workers are being encouraged to educate themselves about the country’s labour laws in order to facilitate smooth negotiations in settling disputes.

The call came from State Minister in the Ministry of Labour and Social Security, Hon. Zavia Mayne, in his address at the Kingston leg of the ‘Labour Department and You’ road show at the Jamaica Pegasus Hotel, New Kingston on Thursday (November 22).

“As we continue to have (bitter) labour disputes, we recognise that the majority of these cases could have been resolved at the organisational level if the parties had a better understanding of our labour laws,” he noted.

“Be proactive rather than being reactive and then finding that you are in breach of our labour laws… A better understanding of our labour legislation will also lead to a more productive and profitable organisation,” he added.

Mr. Mayne said the ‘Labour Department and You’ road show, which is being staged by the Ministry across the island, seeks to promote greater awareness among employers and workers about their rights.

Under the Labour Relations Code, employers should provide clear, comprehensive and non-discriminatory employment policies. Also, policies should address social welfare services such as medical care, canteens, pension, a well as occupational safety and health.

Some responsibilities of the workers are that they familiarise themselves with the terms of contract and perform contracted service to the best of their ability.

The road show, held over two days, addressed issues related to the job market, industrial relations, occupational safety and health, efforts to eliminate child labour, as well as local and overseas employment programmes.

The next stops are St. James, January 16 and 17; and St. Thomas, February 27 and 28.

The series of education and sensitisation fora involve collaboration with the Jamaica Employers’ Federation (JEF) and the Jamaica Confederation of Trade Unions (JCTU).

Source: https://jis.gov.jm/employers-workers-encourage-to-increase-knowledge-about-labor-laws/

In a time when various communities are under zones of special operations or state of emergency, the Ministry of Labour and Social Security (MLSS), through its Electronic Labour Exchange team – a part of the Ministry’s Labour Market Information System – has been implementing life skills and career development training for youth in these and surrounding areas in Kingston and St. Ann.

During October and November, young people from communities within these parishes, between the ages of 18 and 29, were invited to participate in three-day workshops focused on improving soft skills. They were exposed to areas such as work ethics, job interview skills, building self-confidence and developing positive social skills. Following the intense workshops, the ministry also hosted mini job fairs with partner companies that exposed the youth to interviews and possible on-site hiring.

According to Gillian Corrodus, director of industrial relations & allied services, MLSS, “We at the ministry can understand the frustration of these youth – they want to work and they are willing to seek the opportunities. Through our partnership with New Opportunities for Youth Jamaica, our team has gained training in Passport to Success life skills, job-placement services, teaching strategies and career guidance services. Our team is excited to implement what they have learnt, and when they do, they can see the impact the workshops have on the confidence and willingness of these youngsters. We decided to take it a step further and offer job fairs with our partners and stakeholders, giving them direct access to gainful employment, or the experience of one on one interviews.”

Leaders in education, business, and government agree that ‘soft skills’ training is one of the missing links contributing to today’s talent gap. However, such programming is often scattered, insufficient or non-existent, leaving too many young people unprepared to get and keep a job.

Speaking at the ministry’s roadshow, titled ‘The Labour Department and You’, Shahine Robinson, minister of labour and social security, highlighted the importance of soft skills in today’s youth. “The gap identified is that of soft skills and the lack thereof, with emphasis being placed on customer service and empathy,” stated Robinson.

“I want to tell you that the soft skills are the personal attributes – personality traits, inherent social cues and communication skills needed for success on the job. Soft skills include possessing a good attitude, the use of initiative, creative thinking, teamwork, decision-making, good work ethics, networking, positivity, time management, motivation, flexibility, problem-solving and conflict resolution,” she further added.

Source: http://jamaica-gleaner.com/article/news/20181113/ministry-invests-unattached-youth

The Ministry of Labour and Social Security is working collaboratively with the Statistical Institute of Jamaica (STATIN) to tackle child labour at the community level.

“We will be having a community-level intervention to encourage behaviour change, based on the data revealed in the recent Youth Activity Survey,” said portfolio Minister, Hon. Shahine Robinson.

“This project will also extend to the training of labour officers and law-enforcement officers,” she added. 

She was speaking at the Ministry’s ‘Labour Department and You’ roadshow held at the Ocho Rios Baptist Church on Tuesday (October 30).

The Jamaica Youth Activity Survey 2016 revealed that approximately 38,000 children between five and 17 years old are engaged in child labour.

“That is 5.7 per cent of the country’s children population… the Jamaican public needs to be aware of what is happening in our own backyard, so when we say ‘no to child labour’, we all say it with meaning and determination to eradicate it from our shores,” Mrs. Robinson said.

She said that the Government is determined to eliminate child labour in Jamaica and has made great strides in this regard.

She noted that the partnership forged with the United States (US) Department of Labour’s WINROCK International CLEAR II project and the International Labour Organization (ILO) to tackle the scourge has been reaping success.

“We recently benefited from regional training held here in Jamaica, and that included The Bahamas, Guyana, and Barbados,” she said. 

In her remarks, Country Coordinator for the WINROCK International CLEAR II project, Cheryl Ivey, said that the organisation continues to assist with strengthening Government’s policies and legislation that seek to address child labour issues in Jamaica.

“We also are looking at the development of a national action plan on child labour. This is going to be like a strategic plan for child labour, where all our partners will know their role and function and who needs to collaborate with whom and how do we handle the cases,” she noted.

The ‘Labour Department and You’ roadshow, held over two days, addressed issues related to the job market, industrial relations, occupational safety and health, efforts to eliminate child labour, as well as local and overseas employment programmes.

The roadshows, which will travel across the islands, are being staged in collaboration with the Jamaica Employers’ Federation (JEF) and the Jamaica Confederation of Trade Unions (JCTU).

The next stops are Kingston and St. Andrew on November 21 and 22; St. James, January 16 and 17; and St. Thomas, February 27 and 28.

Source: https://jis.gov.jm/project-to-tackle-child-labour-at-the-community-level/

The Government is seeking public-private partnership to close the soft skills gap that exists among the nation’s youth.

Minister of Labour and Social Security, Hon. Shahine Robinson, says the 2017 National Labour Market survey found that the skills gap was predominant among students leaving high school with no work experience.

She is imploring partnership with the Ministry as it seeks to close the gap in a bid to better prepare young people for the world of work and to improve productivity.

“The gap identified is that of soft skills and the lack thereof, with emphasis being placed on customer service and empathy,” she said, while addressing a ‘Labour Department and You’ roadshow, held recently at the Ocho Rios Baptist Church, St. Ann.

“I want to tell you that the soft skills are the personal attributes. Personality traits, inherent social cues and communication skills needed for success on the job. Soft skills include possessing a good attitude, the use of initiative, creative thinking, teamwork, decision-making, good work ethics, networking, positivity, time management, motivation, flexibility, problem solving and conflict resolution,” she pointed out.

Meanwhile, Mrs. Robinson said that the Ministry will continue to use its Labour Market Information System (LMIS) to better prepare young workers for the present and future demands of the job market.

“The Ministry’s LMIS website provides information about market data, which includes hot jobs, emerging and obsolete jobs, and seeks to provide information on possible scholarships and job opportunities. I say obsolete because some jobs are, in fact, disappearing as technology improves,” she noted.

In this regard, she underscored the need for Jamaicans to prepare themselves for the emerging marketplace and the emerging jobs.

Mrs. Robinson stressed that the world of work is changing at an alarming rate and “we have to keep abreast of it if we are going to make ourselves marketable and make ourselves investor-friendly as a country too”.

“As we continue [on] the trajectory of reducing youth unemployment, the Ministry will continue to work through our evidence-based programmes, such as the labour market information system… to prepare young workers for the present and future demands of the world of work,” she added.

She said that the Ministry plans to review the Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with the HEART Trust/NTA to meet the demands in the job market.

She noted, for example, that “we can’t find enough landscapers, not even for the local demand much less for the overseas demand. So, as jobs emerge and the market changes, we have to make ourselves relevant to that market”.

The roadshow was the second in the series being staged by the Ministry to address issues related to the job market, industrial relations, occupational safety and health, efforts to eliminate child labour, as well as local and overseas employment programmes.

The roadshows, which will travel across the island, are being staged in collaboration with the Jamaica Employers’ Federation (JEF) and the Jamaica Confederation of Trade Unions (JCTU).

The show will stop in Kingston and St. Andrew on November 21 and 22; St. James, January 16 and 17; and St. Thomas, February 27 and 28.

Source: https://jis.gov.jm/govt-seeking-partnerships-to-address-soft-skills-gap/

In response to reports of industrial action islandwide by the Jamaica Public Service Company Limited (JPSCo) and workers affiliated to the Union of Clerical, Administrative and Supervisory Employees (UCASE), the Ministry of Labour and Social Security held an emergency conciliation meeting this morning.

Arising from the meeting, the parties have agreed that:

• Normalcy will be restored at the Jamaica Public Service Company Limited this evening, Tuesday, October 9, 2018 with the 8:00 p.m. shift.
• The Union and the Company will meet at the local level on Thursday, October 11, 2018 to have further discussions.

There will be a follow up conciliation meeting at the Ministry’s 1F North Street Office on October 16, 2018.

Minister of Labour and Social Security, Hon. Shahine Robinson, says the Electronic Labour Exchange (ELE) is positively impacting the lives of young jobseekers.

The ELE matches employers and jobseekers, and provides career counselling, résumé writing, and access to information on scholarships and loans.

“In recent times, we have been working with persons in the Zones of Special Operations (ZOSOs) by providing job-readiness training and employment placement. I have had the chance to see them as they visit our office, and I am proud to share that the programmes offered by the ELE have created a sense of hope for them and their families,” the Minister said.

She informed that officials from St. Kitts and Nevis, Barbados, and Grenada conducted a study tour of the programme earlier this month, to see whether it could be used as a model to address youth unemployment in their respective countries. The visit was funded by the Organization of American States (OAS).

Mrs. Robinson was speaking at the first in the series of ‘Labour and You’ roadshows on Wednesday (September 19) in Mandeville, Manchester.

The two-day event addressed issues related to industrial relations, the job market, occupational safety and health, efforts to eliminate child labour, as well as local and overseas employment programmes.

Minister Robinson, in her presentation, stressed the importance of improving skills and being prepared for the job market in an era when the notion of having one job over a lifetime is a thing of the past.

She noted that in order to ensure the greatest level of productivity over the 47 years of one’s working life, intervention programmes are needed to facilitate skilling, re-skilling and upskilling.

“Gone are the days that workers complete training which lasts a lifetime. With the rapid changes in the way we manage businesses and perform work, the skills learnt up to age 18 will become outdated by mid-career. To that end, the roadshows will be a vehicle for directing people to improving their skills,” she said.

The Minister, in the meantime, cautioned prospective jobseekers to be wary of unscrupulous persons, who will fleece them out of hard-earned money by offering them fake overseas employment opportunities.

She said that the Ministry has help desks and qualified officers, who can provide them with credible information about registered employment agencies.

Meanwhile, Director of Industrial Relations and Allied Services in the Ministry, Gillian Corrodus, said the roadshow, which will travel across the island, will address a number of critical issues related to the labour market, including the labour laws.

“When we look at the number of concerns and complaints that are shared with us by employers and employees, we recognise that we need to have greater dialogue,” she said.

“So the concept of this regional roadshow is to roll up our sleeves and speak to some of these issues to see if we can achieve growth and achieve our sustainable development goals,” Ms. Corrodus added.

Among the agencies of the Ministry represented were the Industrial Relations Department, Child Labour Unit, Electronic Labour Exchange, Employment Agencies Unit, Pay and Conditions of Employment Branch, Social Intervention Programme and the Occupational Safety and Health Department.

The roadshows, which will travel across the island, involve collaboration with the Jamaica Employers’ Federation and the Jamaica Confederation of Trade Unions.

The show will next stop in St. Ann October 30 and 31; Kingston and St. Andrew, November 21 and 22; St. James, January 16 and 17; and St. Thomas, February 27 and 28.

Source: https://jis.gov.jm/young-jobseekers-benefiting-from-electronic-labour-exchange/

More and more non-unionised workers are having their cases sent to the Industrial Disputes Tribunal (IDT) for arbitration, according to the Ministry of Labour and Social Security. Changes to the Labour Relations and Industrial Disputes Act close to a decade ago, cleared the way for greater access.

“For the period January 2017 to December 2017, sixty-two disputes were referred to the IDT. Of these disputes, 55, or 89 per cent, were non-unionised cases, while only seven, or 11 per cent, were unionised cases. As at August 2018, of the total number of cases sent to the IDT for arbitration, only nine per cent were unionised,” said Shahine Robinson, minister of labour and social security. She was addressing a quarterly press briefing held on Tuesday at the ministry’s downtown Kingston offices.

Robinson noted that there are currently 67 active and five inactive disputes before the IDT. The inactive disputes are pending in court, and the tribunal cannot hear the matters until rulings have been made.

Dunstan Bryan, the ministry’s acting permanent secretary told The Gleaner: “In the previous dispensation, the persons would have to be part of unions, and the regulations were specific to their participation in the conciliation and the referral to the IDT. With the amendment to the legislation, ordinary citizens – household workers, workers in the retail trade, ordinary citizens – can access the IDT by themselves by representing themselves to the ministry.”

The case is then assessed and sent to the IDT based on its merit.

Robinson gave an update on her Sectoral Debate announcement in June that IDT services would be expanded to western Jamaica.

She said: “I am pleased to report that the ministry is finalising the lease agreement for the new facility. By the end of this financial year, workers and employers in western Jamaica will enjoy greater access to [the] IDT’s arbitration services.”

Source: http://jamaica-gleaner.com/article/news/20180906/majority-idt-cases-involve-non-unionised-workers

Approximately 7,194 Jamaicans were placed in the Overseas Employment Programme for the period April to June 2018, an increase of 5.6 per cent over the corresponding period last year.

Minister of Labour and Social Security, Hon. Shahine Robinson, made the disclosure at a quarterly press briefing, held at the Ministry’s North Street Offices today (September 4).

“Since July 2018, some 1,295 additional persons have been recruited, of which about 100 have been placed on farms in the United States of America,” Mrs. Robinson said.

She noted that based on her visits to the United States Departments of Labour and Homeland Security, the Ministry expects new employees to come on board, possibly yielding 200 new recruits.

“As we accelerate marketing strategies for the programme, opportunities in the United States care and construction industries are being discussed,” Mrs. Robinson said.

Meanwhile, Mrs. Robinson said the Ministry is aware of the concerns about the recent incidents of scamming by employment agencies.

She pointed out that the comprehensive public-education campaign that was announced during her sectoral presentation in the House will be launched later this month.

“We will pay special attention to rural communities which are particularly susceptible to these nefarious activities. This will be accompanied by ramping up our synergies with the security forces in an increased effort to eradicate this scourge,” the Minister said.

KINGSTON, Jamaica — Labour and Social Security Minister Shahine Robinson today reported that fewer work permits were granted to foreigners for the period April to June, 2018.

Speaking at a quarterly press briefing held at the ministry’s North Street offices today, Robinson disclosed that 1,334 permits were granted for the period and of that number, 831 were new applications and 503 were renewals.

“For the corresponding period last year, we issued 1,675 permits; 835 of them were new applications and 781 were renewals,” she informed.

Robinson said that the granting of work permits is critical in realising the nation’s economic growth.

“It is a mechanism to plug the gaps in skill sets needed to provide sizeable manpower investments in tourism, construction and infrastructure. Many projects being carried out across the island require specialised skills that may not be available locally in adequate numbers,” she explained.

The minister said she has insisted on a thorough review of all applications for work permits to ensure that these are not been issued for skills that exist locally, and, as a result, the numbers are trending down.

“As your minister, I do believe that we have a responsibility to find the balance between facilitating investment opportunities as well as meeting the employment needs of our citizens,” she noted.

Meanwhile, the ministry, in collaboration with the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB), has developed a project to modernise the work permit system.

Robinson noted that this will replace the existing legacy system with a new client-focused, web-based work permit software.

“The new regime will be designed to cut the processing time for work permits, analyse the database of skills in Jamaica and help to simplify the process of doing business,” she noted.

Source: http://www.jamaicaobserver.com/latestnews/Labour_ministry_says_fewer_work_permits_granted_to_foreigners_?profile=1228