THA comes down on gender discrimination

The Tobago House of Assembly (THA) is currently investigating allegations that a female plumber was denied employment by a contractor in the island simply because he did not employ women.

This was revealed yesterday by THA Chief Secretary Orville London when he addressed the formal launch of the Non-Traditional Skills Training Programme for Women at the Roxborough Multi-Purpose Youth Facility in east Tobago. Some 50 women from that end of the island will be trained in masonry/brick-laying/tiling or electrical installation under the programme, which is being administered through the Community Development Fund of the Ministry of Community Development and Gender Affairs.

London made it clear that the THA “is going to be very, very vigilant in relationship to gender discrimination. The only benchmark for employment should be capacity, attitude, qualifications etc; not gender!” he declared. London described as “really disheartening” a complaint made to him personally by a young woman who had graduated in plumbing from a similar-type training programme. He reported: “She said she went to get a job and the contractor indicated to her that he is not employing women. We have that matter under investigation”, he told his audience. London said he did not believe that was “something that is common among most contractors. But I want to indicate to any one of the graduates who might be here, that any time that you have evidence of that kind of discrimination, to please come to my office and make the report and we would ensure that it is investigated because that is not something that we are prepared to condone under any circumstances” the THA Chief Secretary declared.