Ministry of Labour to be “re-established” says Min. Hamilton
– BIT to offer oil and gas training
– OHS officers to be placed in every region
Minister of Labour Hon. Joseph Hamilton says plans are on stream to re-establish the labour ministry in a way that will enhance the skill sets and safeguard the welfare of all Guyanese.
The Minister made these statements when he opened the Government’s debate of the 2020 Budget, at the Arthur Chung Conference Centre on Monday.
Minister Hamilton said the revamped Ministry would focus on capacity building, human development and the protection of the rights of workers. Special attention will be placed on training and the welfare of employees, which will include housing, healthcare and access to education.
The Labour Minister added that the Board of Industrial Training (BIT), which falls within the Ministry’s purview, will have to be restructured to equip young people with the skills needed to be competitive in the 21st century.
“We have already put in place the system to ensure that we can train fibre optic installers, software developers and web developers, computer repair technicians, information technology and data management specialists, network design and analyst, for these are new programmes that we will implement.”
Minister Hamilton noted that the Government also recognised that oil and gas training would have to be included in BIT’s training programme.
“We have already engaged the American Chambers. We have already engaged Exxon. We have already engaged Tullow. We have already had conversations with the ILO [International Labour Organization] which will help us to do the necessary training,” Minister Hamilton said.
The BIT’s structure would also be remodelled to include women, he added.
According to Minister Hamilton, Occupational Health and Safety (OHS) officers will also be trained as the Government intends to place at least two in every region.
“Presently, they do not exist and therefore, employers where in mining, forestry or whichever area, cannot be properly monitored. Workplace inspection was unheard of by the previous Government in the true sense of the word,” the Minister said, adding that there was a shortage of staff in the fields.
The Minister said the complement of staff in the field should be 137, but there were only 87 employees, leading to ineffective inspections and investigations of workplace accidents.
Other agencies within the Ministry’s purview, such as the Central Recruitment and Management Agency and the credit unions will all change to enable them to serve the public better.
The previous administration’s failure to raise the minimum wage of the Private Sector will also be addressed and finalised, the Minister said. He committed that “by June of 2021, the people of Guyana will see a Labour Ministry that they desire”.