Carib signs with NUGFW

At the same time, Caribbean Development Company Limited (CDC) and the NUGFW agreed to grant a six percent wage increase to the company’s weekly and monthly paid workers for 2016 to 2019.

Addressing journalists at the signing ceremony at the CDC headquarters in Champs Fleurs, company officials said the CDC had also agreed to withdraw an appeal against an Industrial Court judgement on behalf of workers for the period 2013 to 2016 and had resolved the matter at a sixteen percent increase.

Ian MacDonald, Chief Executive Officer of both companies, said CBL had decided to honour an Industrial Court judgement which had awarded the monthly paid workers a thirteen percent wage increase for the period 2011 to 2015 and the two sides had agreed to settle at thirteen percent for the weekly paid workers, the agreements accounting for outstanding as well as future contracts.

Christopher Streete, First Deputy President General of the NUGFW, said the union and the workers were happy with the settlements and both sides had committed themselves to show mutual respect.

He said no dispute would remain unresolved as long as the parties showed mutual respect and had the commitment and the will to settle it, although he admitted that in a negotiation neither party would get all that they wanted.

MacDonald said the companies decided to withdraw the appeal because they wanted to forge a partnership with the union but declined to say how much the settlement would cost the companies.

He said the companies expected to be able to pay backpay by the end of the month. In response to a question he acknowledged that the economy was difficult and admitted that the companies were being affected by it but declined to say to what extent sales was being affected though he said that because of the challenging economic conditions it was important for the company to forge a partnership with its workers and the union.

Asked how much the settlement would affect the bottom line of the companies, MacDonald said the companies were more concerned with having an engaged and unified workforce that with the impact on its bottom line.

He added that the companies were confident of the future especially now that it had a sound relationship with its employees.