Labour and social security minister Pearnel Charles yesterday called for a moratorium on redundancies and layoffs and proposed a number of options, including a reduction in working days and hours for employees.

This suggestion was made yesterday after Charles met with members of the Jamaica Confederation of Trade Unions and the Jamaica Employers' Federation (JEF) to discuss ways to mitigate the current spate of redundancies and layoffs in various sectors.

Charles also suggested a reduction in salaries, training and retooling. The minister assured employers that the Government would provide the necessary support in the retraining of workers.

Contacted yesterday, Wayne Chen, president of the JEF, who was also present at yesterday's meeting, said he agreed in principle to Charles' suggestion. "But we caution that individual businesses have to do what is best for their company."

Chen said the JEF also urged the Government to lower costs to doing business in Jamaica.

Tax reforms

He also said that the Government could look at tax reforms, which would allow workers to take home more money. The JEF president also said the Government should strengthen the social safety net and provide subsidies for Jamaicans.

According to Charles, it was prudent for managers to weigh all the options, despite the financial crisis, before making decisions to separate workers from their jobs. He said that each sector and enterprise had unique challenges and would, therefore, have to be examined on its own merit. Charles invited the partners to dialogue with the ministry in finding alternatives to redundancies where such a necessity might arise.

Both trade unions and employer representatives in attendance at the meeting agreed to work closely with the ministry.

The meeting was another attempt by the Ministry of Labour and Social Security to get both employers and workers to cooperate in the midst of global economic uncertainty and to ensure some degree of protection for workers.

petrina.francis@gleanerjm.com