TT’s acceptance of tripartism fundamental to success

MARLENE AUGUSTINE

IF tripartism is fundamental to TT’s success as a people, then there must first be a commitment by all parties to seek tripartite consensus says Keston Nancoo, chairman of the Employer’s Consultative Association.

At a conference on The future of work in TT: Why does decent work Matter at Hyatt Regency, PoS on Friday, Nancoo said after much effort by successive administrations, this country continues to struggle to accept tripartism as fundamental to TT’s future as a nation with a stable economy.

“The value of tripartism is not a delusion. There are several examples of successful tripartite models across the globe including Singapore, Portugal, Japan and various European countries.

“Of course, there have been notable cases even right here in the Caribbean as we have seen with Barbados. The issues faced in these countries may have all been different, but the approach taken to overcome them and succeed remained the same, namely, tripartism.”

Nancoo said the achievement of the drivers of decent work also will require high levels of collaboration and consensus building if the decent work agenda is to be fully realised.

Kevar Cummings-Williams, deputy permanent secretary in the Ministry of Labour and Small Enterprise Development, said the conference presented the distinctive opportunity for social partners to consolidate an integrated approach to addressing pertinent labour issues.

Cummings-Williams said, as the discussions continue to work to promote social dialogue, inclusive growth, sustainable livelihoods and decent work for all, the need for enhanced collaboration and co-operation is underlined."The ministry has held tripartite and multipartite stakeholder consultations in the areas of co-operative development, industrial relations, retrenchment and severance benefits, contract employment, reform of labour legislation and the basic terms and conditions of work."Social dialogue has been the plank of the nation’s deliberations and has proven to be a vehicle for building consensus and synergy among the various actors in society."

Cummings-Williams said the theme acknowledges that citizens are central to the country's development and are the greatest assets.

She said it reflects TT's commitment to create a society in which all the basic needs are met, and each individual is valued and given the opportunity to realise their aspirations and contribute positively to the nation’s development.

"Indeed, similar to the human-centered approach to the future of work, the government aspires to ensure that our society evolves into one in which no one is left behind, where all citizens are afforded equal opportunity to access social services and decent work, and all our citizens, including the most vulnerable, such as our children and youth, are cared for and treated with dignity and respect."