Stakeholders in Jamaica’s building and construction industry have signed a collective labour agreement that will see employees in the sector receiving better wages and benefiting from improved working conditions.
The 2025-2027 Joint Industrial Council (JIC) Labour Management Agreement for the building and construction industry was signed at the Incorporated Master Builders Association of Jamaica (IMAJ) in St Andrew on Tuesday.
The signing followed a verbal agreement reached during a meeting between the IMAJ and unions representing industry workers on January 24, 2025.
The agreement undertakes to stabilise rates of pay and other conditions of employment, establish a formula for the prompt and fair disposition of grievances and ensure that works proceed smoothly without interruption and at the highest attainable efficiency.
It also guarantees construction workers a 19 per cent increase in their wages over a two-year period.
Minister of Labour and Social Security, Pearnel Charles Jr., who was a witness to the signing, noted that it marks an important milestone in the collective pursuit of economic growth, social advancement and industrial harmony in the country.
He said the building and construction industry is a major pillar of Jamaica’s economy, employing thousands of persons and contributing 10 per cent of gross domestic product (GDP).
Charles emphasised the importance of a symbiotic relationship between the country’s engineers, architects, contractors, foremen, specialised tradesmen and labourers, noting that the labour management agreement will assist in this regard.
“The key provisions are moving towards protecting the worker, providing clear rights and responsibilities for management, providing a grievance process, providing clarity in terms of fair and stable wages, committing each party to industrial peace and ensuring that we recognise the vital role of union representation,” he explained.
Charles added, “This is an agreement that is critical, particularly for the Ministry of Labour and Social Security, in terms of ensuring clarity, certainty and confidence in the sector.”
Parties to the agreement included IMAJ President, Richard Mullings; Bustamante Industrial Trade Union (BITU) Vice President, Alden Brown; National Workers Union (NWU) Island Supervisor, Khurt Fletcher, and Trade Union Congress (TUC) General Secretary, Barrington Dawes.
Mullings, who spoke during the ceremony, noted the importance of paying a livable wage to the industry’s workers.
He emphasised that the rates recommended in the agreement should be the minimum standard for both the private and public sectors.
Citing challenges with retaining skilled labour in Jamaica, Mullings expressed the hope that “the increase will encourage the workers to stay… not just in the industry but to stay in the country”.
Meanwhile,Fletcher said he anticipates that the agreement will improve the lives of workers.
“A lot of people seem to think that the document only consists of wages but it has a set of standards and working conditions that protect our workers and protect the quality of the output,” he pointed out.
Fletcher proposed that the agreement to be gazetted so that industry employers outside of the IMAJ would be bound by its terms.
Source: Jamaica Gleaner Online