Denny: Protect all workers

There is a call coming from the Caribbean Movement for Peace and Integration for stronger and more accountable trade union and labour movements going forward. During an address on YouTube in celebration of International Workers’ Day 2020, General Secretary David Denny leaned on authorities and leaders to strengthen the movements on behalf of the workers.

Calling it an important day for trade union activists and workers across the world, Denny said that the time had come for the local movement to dust itself off and move forward as it had a mandate to protect the workers.

“Our Labour movement in Barbados is moving too slow. Our Labour movement in Barbados is acting too weak. The time has come for trade union activists to get more deeply involved in the leadership of our Labour movement. I accept that there must be some way to include trade union bureaucrats, but the activists have a role to play to keep these unions together and to make sure that the workers are represented.”

Noting that all workers needed to be protected, Denny said that the local movement was headed down a path that could see “capitalist forces” able to control and dictate the trade unions. However, he claimed it as his duty to do all that he could to prevent that.

“Because of my position within the National Union of Public Workers as a member, I am dissatisfied with the level of leadership within the National Union of Public Workers and therefore I am calling as a member of the National Union of Public Workers for the union to organise a conference for all workers online for us to be able to bring forth our ideas, to speak about our issues and to help restructure and change the National Union of Public Workers, so that it will represent the interests of all public officers in Barbados,” he said.

Going on to say that it was indeed a time for all working class persons to organise and demand that their rights be respected, he did say that there were some things that were going right while some needed urgent attention.

“I am pleased with the way how the Government of Barbados is working with the working classes of Barbados. I am happy. But at the same time, I want to call on the members of the union – the NUPW – to take these days as serious days because we have many people who have trade union rights, who have certain rights relating to the rights of the working classes within the National Union of Public Workers. For instance, one of the main issues for the working classes within the NUPW is the whole question relating to appointment for public officers,” he said. (MP)