Ambassador and Permanent Representative to the UN, WTO and other International Organizations in Geneva, Matthew Wilson (left) and Barbados’ Minister of Labour, Social Security and Third Sector, Colin Jordan, at the 353rd Session of the International Labour Organization’s Governing Body, recently. (Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Foreign Trade)
Barbados has advocated for social justice and non-discrimination as well as made several key interventions at the 353rd Session of the International Labour Organization’s (ILO) Governing Body.
The session, held from March 10 to 20, in Geneva, Switzerland, saw the Minister of Labour, Social Security and Third Sector, Colin Jordan, leading a government delegation. It included Ambassador and Permanent Representative to the United Nations, World Trade Organization and other International Organizations in Geneva, Matthew Wilson; Deputy Permanent Representative in Geneva, Kay Sealy; and Administrative Officer I, Randy Clarke, who is responsible for the International Desk in the Ministry.
The ILO’s Governing Body elects the Director-General, develops the organisation’s policy, and sets the agenda of the International Labour Conference. Barbados is the only small island developing state represented on the Governing Body (GB).
Mr. Jordan noted that as a Titular or Regular Member, Barbados is among very few countries where the Government and both social partners are represented on the same body.
At the GB elections in June 2024, General Secretary of the Barbados Workers’ Union, Toni Moore, was elected as a Deputy Member for workers, while the Barbados Employers Confederation’s, Chief Executive Officer, Sheena Mayers-Granville, was elected as a Deputy Member for employers. They both participated in the session.
During the session, Barbados made interventions in several key areas that align with the Declaration of Mission Barbados and the Bridgetown Initiative. Additionally, interventions supported the views of the Group of Latin America and Caribbean Countries and brought to light some of the challenges currently experienced within the Caribbean region, and by small island developing states globally. The delegation also emphasised the need to focus on the ILO’s core mandate, given the speed of geo-political events and tensions around multilateralism.
Minister Jordan’s interventions underscored the fundamental principle that the rights of workers everywhere must be protected and that labour rights are human rights.
Another fundamental point that Barbados drove home was that social justice is at the heart of decent work. Social justice demands equity, especially in the face of the climate crisis and the rapid developments in technology.
Mr. Jordan also held bilateral meetings on the sidelines of the session with the leadership of the ILO’s Global Coalition for Social Justice, with the ILO department overseeing the upcoming Conference on decent work in the platform economy, and another with the Vice Minister of Labour of Venezuela, Eduardo Piñate.
In a small group and Ambassador-level consultation on the ILO’s programme and budget, chaired by the ILO Director-General Gilbert F. Houngbo, Barbados was represented by Ambassador Wilson. The budget was eventually passed after a late-night vote on the penultimate day of the meeting.
Before the vote, Minister Jordan addressed the Governing Body and stated: “I thank the workers and employers’ groups for proposing the elements for the draft decision, which provide a very good basis to reach some form of consensus that will help us deliver the budget and respect the non-discrimination mandate of the ILO.”
Also, during the session, Mr. Jordan, Ms. Moore, and Mrs. Mayers-Granville all paid tribute to the late Arni Walters, who represented Barbados on the ILO’s Governing Body while he was Minister in the Prime Minister’s Office with responsibility for labour.
Source: https://gisbarbados.gov.bb/blog/barbados-advocates-for-social-justice-at-353rd-ilo-session/
Author: Government of Barbados
