Smooth industrial relations beneficial to all

Developing and maintaining smooth industrial relations between management and employees would be advantageous to the company.

This is coming from Linda Bowen, Senior Labour Officer – Industrial Relations Section of the Labour Department, who spoke with The Barbados Advocate yesterday on the sidelines of the Labour Management Relations Seminar at the Labour Department, Warrens Office Complex.

“Smooth industrial relations between employers and their workers can only benefit an organisation, and for this reason it is crucial that Management understands and learns about pertinent Labour Legislation. It is against this backdrop that employers are asked to attend the Labour Department’s seminars, presented under the theme ‘Labour Legislation and Industrial Relations Best Practices’.”

In addition to informing and educating management of this legislation, they also develop an understanding of efficient industrial relations practices so that they can reduce conflict in the work environment.

“With the realisation that the Department receives numerous questions daily about Labour Laws from employees and employers alike, these seminars are intended to provide information about legislation and examine best practices in industrial relations, so that there is reduced conflict and increased harmony in the workplace. In such seminars, it is pointed out that both parties have a role to play. If a business is not profitable, it cannot pay wages, it cannot hire people. So the onus is on the managers and on the employees to come together to reduce tensions; both have to be on the same page, pulling in the same direction in the interests of the organisation.”

It is also imperative that the relationship between employers and the Labour Department remain cordial, she said.

“The Department has also recognised the need to foster closer ties between employers and the Labour Department, to dispel the notion the Department carries this ‘big stick’ and is only the place of recourse after a fracture in the working relationship. It is hoped that pertinent information would be gathered by both sides and that these interactive sessions be used to assist in the parties not only in encouraging a mutual understanding of each other’s responsibility and authority, but an awareness that the Department is at the vanguard of promoting social and economic justice for all in the workplace.” (PJT)