Is PM phasing out urp ?
The free movement of labour is a good economic principle. Just as free trade in goods has been proven to foster economic growth, so too could unrestricted labour mobility significantly lower mass poverty throughout the world. However, the emergence of a global market for skilled people lowers wages of the unskilled, since the latter’s income depends heavily on the presence of the former. So, if this new plan comes to fruition, Trinidad and Tobago may actually harm the poorer citizens of our Caricom neighbours. The economic solution is to allow free movement of both skilled and unskilled person — but what makes economic sense is often not politically feasible. Still, it would be hypocritical to object to the Government’s plans to import skilled labour from other Caricom countries, when so many Trinbagonians would like nothing better than free access to the developed nations. At the same time, Prime Minister Patrick Manning’s rationale for bringing in skilled labour has some gaping holes. "If it is that we are able to create so much work in the country that we have to import skills, I plead guilty and happily so," said Mr Manning, after a Budget planning session held at Crowne Plaza on Tuesday. But is it that so much work has been created or is there is a shortage of skilled labour in the country? Oropouche MP Roodal Moonilal has rightly pointed to the plethora of Government programmes, from HYPE to GAPP to YAPA, aimed at producing skilled workers. Is there really so much new work that all these graduates have been absorbed into the economy, or are they just not qualified for skilled jobs? The May 2004 Economic Bulletin issued by the Central Bank indicates that the labour force fell by over five thousand persons, with employment in the manufacturing sector showing the highest decline in that year. In the construction sector, employment fell from a high of 85.7 percent in the third quarter of 2003 to 80.5 percent in the first quarter of 2004. However, the unemployment rate itself has held steady at around ten percent, implying that some workers have shifted sectors. What accounts for this? Have skilled workers been siphoned off by the Unemployment Relief Programme (URP) and CEPEP or have they emigrated? Some explanation is needed before importing labour can be considered a positive development. Additionally, when Mr Manning, who is also the country’s Finance Minister, continues to characterise CEPEP as "a programme of entrepreneurship," it raises the suspicion that his definition of "work" is political rather than economic. This kind of mindset was also revealed when Mr Manning asserted that public expenditure would be shifted towards the social sector "as the Government becomes more people-oriented and people-friendly." But the assumption here is that there is some paradox between dealing with macro-economic measures and being "people friendly". However, it is clear that welfare measures — which is essentially what Mr Manning means by "people-oriented" — do not help people in the long run and, by draining the public purse, often do more harm than good to the least well-off in the society. Helping those persons means investment in education and health, as well as measures which will foster economic growth. In this respect, it is ironic that Mr Manning should characterise the URP as "not a permanent programme," since successive PNM regimes have been unable to do more than rename this make-work scheme for the past four decades. However, if there is indeed a plan to phase out the URP, Mr Manning should unveil it as soon as possible. Hopefully, all these issues will be clarified next month when the 2005/2006 Budget is presented.
Comments
"Is PM phasing out urp ?"