RIGHTS AT WORK AND BENEFITS FOR WORKERS INTHE CARICOM SINGLE MARKET AND ECONOMY

SubregionalOffice for theCaribbean

CARICOM

InternationalLabourOrganization

Workerson the

move inthe

CSMERIGHTS AT WORK AND

BENEFITS FOR WORKERS INTHE CARICOM SINGLE

MARKET AND ECONOMY

Funding for this booklet was provided by the United States Department of Labor. This booklet does notnecessarily reflect the views or policies of the United States Department of Labor, nor does mention oftrade names, commercial products, or organizations imply endorsement by the United States Government.

September 2007

CARICOM

InternationalLabourOrganization

The International Labour Organization (ILO) is the UnitedNations specialized agency devoted to advancing opportunitiesfor women and men to obtain decent and productive work inconditions of freedom, equity, security and human dignity. Itsmain aims are to promote rights at work, encourage thecreation of enterprises and employment opportunities, enhancesocial protection and strengthen dialogue and consultationfor handling work-related issues.

The ILO is the global body responsible for drawing up andoverseeing international labour standards. Working withgovernments and organizations representing employers andworkers in 181 member States, the ILO seeks to ensure thatlabour standards are respected in practice as well as inprinciple, as the basis for ensuring decent work for all.

The Caribbean Community (CARICOM) was established on4th July 1973.The objectives of the Community, identified in Article 6 of theRevised Treaty, are:

improved standards of living and work;the full employment of labour and other factors ofproduction;accelerated, coordinated and sustained economicdevelopment and convergence;expansion of trade and economic relations with third States;enhanced levels of international competitiveness;organization for increased production and productivity;achievement of a greater measure of economic leverageand effectiveness of Member States in dealing with thirdStates, groups of States and entities of any description;enhanced co-ordination of Member States' foreign andeconomic policies; andenhanced functional co-operation.

CARICOM

InternationalLabourOrganization

The CARICOM Single Market and Economy (CSME) is beingestablished to stimulate economic growth and enhanceinternational competitiveness through the utilization of the region’shuman and other resources. This is expected to contribute toimproved standards of living and work for CARICOM Nationals.The Revised Treaty of Chaguaramas, establishing the CaribbeanCommunity including the CARICOM Single Market and Economy,establishes the legal framework for implementation of the CSMEand has been enacted into domestic law by all countriesparticipating in the CSME.

In 2006, the Single Market came into effect with the followingkey elements:

the free movement of skills/labourthe free movement of goodsthe provision of servicesthe free movement of capitalthe right to establishment

Currently the following countries are participating in the CARICOMSingle Market and Economy:

Antigua and BarbudaBarbadosBelizeDominicaGrenadaGuyanaJamaicaSt. Kitts and NevisSaint LuciaSt. Vincent and the GrenadinesSurinameTrinidad and Tobago

Work on the Single Economy is ongoing.

CARICOMSingle

Marketand

Economy

1

A. Eligible categories of workers

Presently, the following categories of workers are eligible tomove and work freely within the Community:

University GraduatesMedia WorkersSportspersonsArtistesMusiciansTeachersNurses

The Conference of Heads of Government of CARICOM hasdecided to broaden the eligible categories to other workers.The year 2009 has been targeted by CARICOM for the fulland free movement of labour within the CSME.

Right to seek employment

The approved categories of workers have the right to seekand engage in gainful employment in any of the MemberStates, which are part of the CSME arrangements.

Requirements for moving within the CSME

Approved categories of workers are required to obtain aCertificate of Recognition of CARICOM Skills Qualification asprovided for in the CARICOM Skills National Acts of MemberStates. The Certificate will facilitate free movement into andwithin Member States as it would provide Immigration Officialswith proof that a CARICOM National belongs to the approvedcategories under the CSME.

Whocan move

in theCSME?

A CARICOM National is a person who is:

a citizen by birth, descent or naturalization of; ora national of; ora person belonging to a Member State of the Community.(Article 32.5 of the Revised Treaty)

Who areCARICOMNationals?

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A CARICOM National with a Certificate of Recognition of CARICOMSkills Qualification, who is seeking to enter another MemberState will be granted entry for a definite or indefinite duration.When the Skills Certificate is issued by the designated Ministerof their home country or another Member State, CARICOMNationals will be granted entry for six months, during whichperiod the host country has the right to verify that the personindeed belongs to one of the eligible categories. CARICOMNationals will be granted indefinite entry when the host countryis satisfied that the person is indeed a Skilled CARICOM National.

Workers not belonging to the approved categories

Workers who are not yet eligible for free movement, will haveto apply for a work permit. Once they have found employmentand have a job letter in hand, they must initiate the applicableprocedures as laid out in relevant Immigration and Labour Actsin Member States before accessing employment.

The permits are usually issued for a specific job and for a specificperiod.

Entryof approvedcategories of

workers

ILODeclaration

onFundamental

Principlesand

Rights atWork

The success of the CSME depends on a well-integrated labourforce – where workers are treated equally in the host countryand enjoy the same fundamental rights at work as a national.

CARICOM Member States, which are also members of the ILOhave all subscribed to the fundamental rights at work which areembodied in the International Labour Organization’s Declarationon Fundamental Principles and Rights at Work, namely:

the elimination of discrimination in respect of employmentand occupation;freedom of association and the effective recognition of theright to collective bargaining;the elimination of all forms of forced and compulsory labour;andthe effective abolition of child labour.

The fundamental principles and rights at work aim to safeguardworkers from exploitation. Furthermore, the implementation ofthese principles and rights provide a framework for workers toenjoy equal opportunity, access decent work and obtain a fairshare of the wealth which they have helped to generate.

Article 7 on Non-discrimination and Article 73 on IndustrialRelations of the Revised Treaty of Chaguaramas guarantee someof these fundamental rights at work. The Charter of Civil Societyalso makes adequate provisions for protecting fundamentalworkers’ rights.

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The International LabourOrganization (ILO) Declarationon Fundamental Principles andRights at Work

The ILO Declaration on Fundamental Principles and Rightsat Work covers four essential categories in the world ofwork. In each of these categories, there are two Conventionsthat further stipulate and define these rights.DISCRIMINATION

No. 111 Discrimination (Employment and Occupation)ConventionNo. 100 Equal Remuneration Convention

FREEDOM OF ASSOCIATION AND COLLECTIVEBARGAINING

No. 87 Freedom of Association and Protection of theRight to Organize ConventionNo. 98 Right to Organize and Collective BargainingConvention

FORCED AND COMPULSORY LABOURNo. 29 Forced Labour ConventionNo. 105 Abolition of Forced Labour Convention

CHILD LABOURNo. 138 Minimum Age ConventionNo. 182 Worst Forms of Child Labour Convention

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ILO Convention No. 111 on DiscriminationILO Convention No. 100 on Equal Remuneration

This fundamental right promotes equal opportunity and treatmentin all aspects of work, from training to recruitment and pay, toworking conditions. It stipulates that no worker should bediscriminated at work on the grounds of race, colour, sex,religion, political opinion, national extraction or social origin.

CARICOM Nationals, who are entitled to move and work freelywithin the CSME, are also entitled to be recruited and to workunder the same conditions as nationals of the Member State towhich they have moved for work purposes. “Any discriminationon the grounds of nationality only shall be prohibited.”(Article 7 of Revised Treaty)

In addition, the principle of equal opportunity between womenand men must be respected as women have the right “to beafforded equal opportunities for employment and to receiveequal remuneration with men for work of equal value”(Article XII.b – Charter of Civil Society).

ILO Convention No. 111 on DiscriminationAll persons should, without discrimination, enjoy equalityof opportunity and treatment, in respect of:

access to vocational guidance and placement servicesaccess to training and employment of their own choiceon the basis of individual suitability for such trainingor employment;opportunities for promotion;security of tenure of employment;remuneration for work of equal value; andconditions of work, including hours of work, restperiods, annual holidays with pay, occupational safetyand health measures, as well as social securitymeasures and welfare facilities and benefits providedin connection with employment.

1. EqualOpportunity

andTreatment

inEmployment

5

Social Security

A CARICOM National, who is a worker, must be insured in theMember State where he or she is employed and must thereforemake contributions to the respective social security organization.In some Member States, social security organizations are referredto as national insurance agencies.

It is important to note that CARICOM Nationals are entitled tothe same benefits as nationals of the host country, as providedby the respective social security organization.

The CARICOM Agreement on Social Security, which came intoeffect on 1st April, 1997, protects all entitlements to long-termbenefits by providing for the adding up of all the contributions,which have been paid to the respective social security organizationin Member States where they worked.

This Agreement applies to the following payments of socialsecurity:

invalidity benefits;disablement benefits;old age or retirement benefits;survivors’ benefits, anddeath benefits.

Benefitsfor

workers

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ILO Convention No. 87 on Freedom of Association andProtection of the Right to Organize

ILO Convention No. 98 on the Right to Organize andCollective Bargaining

ILO Convention No. 87 guarantees the right of workers andemployers to organize and join organizations freely and takeaction to protect their interests in the labour market and at theworkplace. ILO Convention No.98 protects those who join tradeunions and promotes the voluntary negotiation of terms andconditions of employment.

These principles and rights afforded to both workers’ andemployers’ organizations ensure that dialogue and negotiationneeded for improving employment terms and conditions can beeasily facilitated, affording each party an opportunity to voiceand protect their own interests.

A CARICOM National, who is employed in another Member State,has the right “to form or belong to and participate in the activitiesof trade unions or other associations for the promotion andprotection of his or her interest, or the right not to belong toand participate in the activities of any such trade union orassociation” (Article XIX.a – Charter of Civil Society).

ILO Convention No. 87 on Freedom of Association andProtection of the Right to Organize sets out the followingrights and guarantees:

workers and employers can establish and joinorganizations of their choice without previousauthorization;workers’ and employers’ organizations shall have theright to draw up their own constitutions and rules;andworkers’ and employers’ organizations shall not beliable to be dissolved or suspended by administrativeauthority.

ILO Convention No. 98 on the Right to Organize andCollective Bargaining:

guarantees workers adequate protection against actsof anti-union discrimination in respect of theiremployment, including requirements that a workernot join a union or relinquish trade union membershipfor employment, or dismissal of a worker because ofunion membership or participation in union activities.encourages and protects the process of voluntarynegotiation between workers and employerorganizations to regulate terms and conditions ofemployment by means of collective agreements.

2. Havinga Voice

at Work

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ILO Convention No. 29 on Forced labour

ILO Convention No. 105 on Abolition of Forced Labour

These Conventions embody the principle that no one should beforced to work, that is, to perform work on a non-voluntary basisor under threat of being penalized. They call for the suppressionof forced or compulsory labour in all its forms.

All CARICOM Member States have ratified the two ILO Conventionson Forced Labour and so are committed to its elimination.Furthermore, the Revised Treaty is not applicable in cases wheregoods are produced through forced labour in accordance withArticle 226.

While ILO Convention No. 29 calls for the generalprohibition of forced or compulsory labour in all its forms(subject to 5 exceptions provided for in the Convention),ILO Convention No. 105 on the Abolition of ForcedLabour provides for the suppression of any form of forcedor compulsory labour in five defined cases:

as a means of political coercion or education or aspunishment for holding or expressing political viewsor views ideologically opposed to the establishedpolitical, social or economic system;as a method of mobilizing and using labour for purposesof economic development;as a means of labour discipline;as a punishment for having participated in strikes; andas a means of racial, social, national or religiousdiscrimination.

3. Nocompulsory

work -elimination

of forcedlabour

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ILO Convention No. 138 on Minimum Age for employmentILO Convention No. 182 on the Worst Forms of Child LabourThese Conventions provide protection against the exploitation ofchildren by clearly defining a national minimum age for entry intoemployment and by abolishing, as a matter of urgency, the worstforms of child labour. These include the use of children below theage of 18 for illicit activities and for work in hazardous occupations,such as working with heavy and dangerous equipment or chemicals.The purpose of these Conventions is to ensure that children areafforded an opportunity to access education and to develop physically,mentally and morally before entering into work.

The Revised Treaty of Chaguaramas is not applicable in caseswhere goods have been produced through child labour inaccordance with Article 226.

ILO Convention No. 138 obliges ILO member Statesto:

pursue a national policy designed to ensure the effectiveabolition of child labour;establish by law a minimum age for admission toemployment and work (between the ages of 14-15);andprohibit the employment of young persons under 18years of age in work or activities that are likely tojeopardize their safety, health or moral development.

ILO Convention No. 182, which addresses all childrenbelow the age of 18, targets the worst forms of childlabour. It requires member States to take immediate andeffective measures to secure the prohibition and eliminationof the worst forms of child labour as a matter of urgency.These forms include such inhumane practices as:

slavery, trafficking, debt bondage and other forms offorced labour;prostitution and pornography;forced recruitment of children for military purposes;the use of children for illicit activities such as traffickingof drugs; andwork which is likely to harm the health, safety or moralsof children.

4. Protectionof children-elimination

of childlabour

9

If you are a CARICOM National and have moved within the CSMEand you think that your rights have been infringed in the receivingcountry, you may:

seek representation by your union if you are a member of aunion;consult the Ministry of Labour or Labour Department in thatcountry; orcontact the CSME Focal Point in your country or host country.

For further information on movement within the CSME, pleasecontact the CSME Unit or Focal Point in your country, or visit theCSME website at www.csmeonline.org.

EnforcingYour Rights- help and

information

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