Annisette: Help workers during covid19 pandemic

NATIONAL Trade Union Centre (NATUC) head Michael Annisette called for collaboration between capital and labour during the covid19 pandemic and for more to be done to protect the rights of workers especially vulnerable women and informal sector workers. He gave his views to Newsday on Friday when asked about Industrial Court president Deborah Thomas-Felix’s recent call for companies to obey labour laws during the pandemic and pay workers any severance benefit owed to them. Annisette urged a collaborative approach against covid19 as both a health issue and a social and economic issue.

“From the information we are receiving and what we are seeing too often is that a lot of employers are using covid to unilaterally implement conditions and terms without respect to workers rights.”

Saying the survival of any business was in the best interest of TT and the workers, Annisette urged capital and labour to find a connectivity and social accommodation to move forward.

He said businesses have a responsibility towards their workers who must not be seen as inanimate objects to be used and then discarded.

“Workers have families and have a soul and a heart. Understand your responsibility as an employer. It is not just to make money.”

Annisette said on Friday he had received a report of a worker with covid19 who was afraid to come off of his job as he won’t be paid for the lost time.

“I want to compliment those employers who say, ‘If you are sick, stay home. But some don’t say that.”

Annisette also lamented the job situation of single mothers of school-age children now stuck at home. “They must make a decision if to go to work or stay home to help their child with online learning. The decision will be ‘I have to go to work’ and so the children are left unsupervised online in this crazy world.” He lamented scenes of three children, all with classes at the same time, huddled around a single smart-phone, each trying access online learning.

“There needs to be an evaluation of these experiences.”

Annisette also lamented the case of female workers who were put on covid19 lockdown while pregnant, but without them first having racked up 13 weeks of employment to access benefits. “You are not paid maternal benefits,” he warned. Asked if he’d like to appeal to the Government over such cases, Annisette said, “We must find mechanisms as soon as possible to address this issue, whether through the National Insurance Act or another mechanism.”

Newsday asked if the Prime Minister should have declared a blanket grant of entitlement to pandemic leave for any sick worker.

Annisette replied, “It was specific to public servants. But there is no legislation that speaks of pandemic leave to private sector workers. There is no provision in law to take care of these eventualities.

“Why not do a specific law for pandemic leave? It could be a temporary measure for a limited period to safeguard workers livelihood and not expose the most vulnerable workers to the vagaries of the pandemic.

“If you leave it just to employers, most will not do it, saying they can’t afford it.”

Annisette said while public service workers now work on rotation, sadly that has not been extended to the private sector. He also lamented that some statutory authorities have argued this rotation does not apply to them, such as regional health authorities, Public Transport Service Corporation (PTSC), Port Authority and TTEC.

Annisette complained that the Public Transport Service Corporation (PTSC) had stopped testing passengers for fever upon entering its buses. “In London, some 55 bus drivers have died due to the pandemic,” he alerted.

Annisette said during the pandemic the State’s responsibility must be to protect the most vulnerable citizens.

Newsday asked if the Industrial Court was viewed as anti-employer. Annisette said that was a misrepresentation that was certainly not evidence-based in terms of court rulings. He said it was unfortunate for anyone to pass judgement on the court, which they would not do otherwise for the judiciary.

"The Industrial Court is a different creature. It is a creature that has regard for human rights and workers rights, and is not rooted in simple law and advocacy. It is about decent work, workers rights and employers rights.

"We want a fair articulation of the principles of good industrial relations practice and the rights of workers. The court is not to be in favour of anyone but to dispense justice under good industrial relations practices, guided by international practice and jurisprudence."

Newsday spoke to Employers Consultative Association (ECA) head Keston Nancoo and duly sent him our questions but we did not receive a reply up to press time.