Shafting the workers

By Peter Espeut

Capitalism is an unequal battle between management and workers, between the strong and the weak. This is why good governments come down on the side of the workers, to protect the weak against the strong. When governments come down on the side of the strong, the weak don't stand a chance!

Modern Jamaica was born out of the labour unrest of November 1937 at Serge Island, May 1938 at Frome and the docks of Kingston and St Ann's Bay, and June 1938 at Islington. National Heroes Bustamante and Manley founded strong labour unions that won for the workers of this country benefits such as annual vacation leave apart from Sundays, and time-and-a-half and double-time pay for overtime and work on weekends.

Both the People's National Party (PNP) and Jamaica Labour Party (JLP) are labour parties, drawing the vast majority of their support at election time from the workers. But at the same time, PNP and JLP governments have found themselves dependent on hundreds of millions of dollars secretly deposited in party coffers by wealthy businessmen. When push comes to shove, on whose side do the politicians fall? Labour or management? The weak or the strong?

We are about to find out.

The Employment (Flexible Work Arrangements) (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act, 2014 was tabled in Parliament last week by Labour Minister Derrick Kellier. I don't know why Cabinet chose the labour ministry to shaft the workers; they should have used the Ministry of Industry, Investment and Commerce to pilot the bill, as it is management who will benefit from the new flexi-week arrangements.

TRAGEDY FOR LABOUR

If the act is passed in its present form, all seven days of the week will have equal status as workdays; work on Saturdays or Sundays will no longer attract time-and-a-half or double-time pay; which will shaft the workers and benefit management. The workers of Jamaica - already suffering under the weight on their backs of government-imposed IMF conditionalities - will take home less pay at the end of the week, fortnight or month.

Why is the Government - which says it loves the poor - shafting the poor like this? Why are the unions - once defenders of the rights of workers - not fighting against the loss of benefits they fought hard to win in the past?

The proposed bill seeks to change the definition of normal working hours. Currently, workers labour eight hours per day, five days per week. If the act tabled last week is passed in its present form, the normal workweek will become 40 hours, no matter how many days are worked to get 40 hours. Currently, if a person works in excess of eight hours per day, overtime rates will apply. Under the new act, a worker could work 12 hours at a stretch and earn no overtime pay, as long as they only work 40 hours for the week.

It's one thing if I choose to work these long hours, but under the proposed act, I will have no choice in the matter if the boss says I have to work a 12-hour shift three days per week. The boss would simply refuse to hire me, and I would have no recourse. Suppose I have children at home to look after, or aged parents? The boss holds the handle, and I hold the blade. Why is the Government proposing a law so much in favour of management? And why are the unions not fighting for the advantage of the workers?

VACATION DILEMMA

All workers are entitled to vacation leave with pay, and under the present arrangements, Sundays and public holidays are excluded from the calculation of holidays with pay. If the act tabled last week is passed in its present form, Sundays will now be counted as part of leave with pay, which means that workers will get fewer days of vacation leave with no increase in pay. Shafted again! Why is the Labour Party Opposition supporting this, and why are the unions not fighting against the loss of these benefits they fought so hard to win in the past?

With every day - Sunday to Saturday - being equally possible workdays, who decides which day is my day off? The bill says that the worker is free to "negotiate" with management which two days each week are the rest days. This means that, in effect, the management will decide, for the two do not negotiate from equal positions of strength. Suppose I want Wednesday and Saturday off each week to go to Caymanas Park, and my boss says, "No!", how can I negotiate further? Should I not have a right to choose which days I want as my rest days, or my day of worship? Why is the Government proposing a law so much in favour of management? And why are the unions not fighting for the best arrangements for their members?

In the ongoing battle between workers and management, between the weak and the strong, the Government, Opposition and their unions seem united against the weak. Busta and Manley must be revolving in their graves!

Peter Espeut is a sociologist and Roman Catholic deacon. Email feedback to columns@gleanerjm.com.