Barbados Workers' Union Finds Retail Workers Underpaid Due to Unfair Contracts

The Barbados Workers’ Union (BWU) says too many retail workers in this country are underpaid, primarily due to unfair contracts.

Officials from the union, led by general secretary Toni Moore, toured 15 supermarkets yesterday to get an idea of the working conditions and encourage the workers to speak up about their concerns and join the union.

Legal officer Alexandra Thomas, speaking to the media in the car park of Massy Warrens after the group walked through the St Michael supermarket, said one of the challenges of workers in general was the living wage.

“We want to ensure that workers have a liveable wage and in order to do that, we have to make sure that they have the hours and the pay to match that. Unfortunately, both in the fast food industry and the supermarket industry, the hours that some of these workers have been receiving have not been sufficient,” she said.

Thomas said some supermarket and fast food workers were classified as permanent part-time workers.

“You have people working in excess of 20, 25, 30 years as parttime workers which means they are reaching a maximum of 32 hours on any given week. That cannot be enough to support a family, it cannot be enough to support your children, your grandchildren, and we want that to come to an end,” she said.

Moore said this was a problem for a long time and the only solutions were either giving the workers more hours or increasing their wages. She said some of the other issues they came across were environmental conditions, health and safety factors, time allowed for breaks and providing proper seating for workers.

Dissatisfaction

Deputy general secretary Dwaine Paul said they were surprised at the level of dissatisfaction expressed by workers. At that point, the group had previously visited Carlton and A1 Supermarket, Jordans Supermarket, Trimart and Massy Holetown.

“The major complaints all related to compensation, but what we did not bet on was the level at which the staff members were going to express their dissatisfaction. You have a sector that was given the opportunity to continue to work during the harshest time in Barbados, the COVID period, but the workers who did yeoman service during this time still have not really been recognised.

“We believe that it’s time that the workers in this retail sector in Barbados get their due. We want to use this opportunity today to call up all of them and tell them that it is time that we come together under one umbrella, the Barbados Works’ Union, to lobby for better. This is not a time to be afraid; this is a time to stand up and demand exactly what is for you,” he said.

With the union marking its 83rd anniversary, Moore said they wanted to make their presence felt, in a similar fashion to when they visited hotels last year. She added that their actions then “ruffled feathers” and caused legislative change, so now they were back in the field looking at the retail sector, with restaurants next on their radar.

Moore also said they were surprised at some of the pushback they received from supermarket management.

“We thought since COVID, supermarket owners saw the value their workers add to their organisations and how much they need them, but we still are in the process of negotiations with at least two of the supermarkets right now. We are not getting the kind of responses to the proposals for increased wages that we would like,” she said.

The general secretary said part of this was the responsibility of the workers themselves who needed to band together and, along with the union, advocate for real change.

“In some respects, the workers are not taken seriously as being the kind of workers that will push through and exercise the ultimate strengths that workers have. So when employers, not only in supermarkets but wherever, perceive you not to be solid enough together, then they will divide and rule and take advantage,” she said.

(CA)