Welcome Message From Vanessa Phala, Senior Specialist for Employers’ Activities, Decent Work Team and Office for the Caribbean, International Labour Organisation On the Occasion of the 60th Anniversary of the Barbados Employers’ Confederation, 50th Anniversary of Barbados’ Independence, and Publication of the Third Edition of the
Barbados Employment Compass
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ince the establishment of the Barbados Employers’ Confederation (BEC) on 7 September 1961, the Confederation has and continues to play a critical role in supporting the Government in achieving economic outcomes required to drive growth and development. I am honoured to be featured in the Employment Compass, indeed the journal has made great strides in articulating not only the direction of BEC, but also how it navigates the heavy storms to deliver on its mandate. Not many Employers’ organizations have the resources, both human and financial, to document, sustainably so, the work they do. In addition, BEC has maintained the comprehensive services it offers to its members over the years, this is another challenge many employer organizations are grappling with, especially as demands from members grow while economies are declining which inevitably threatens organizations sustainability. The Confederation has managed to provide services from human resource management; training; research and advocacy to its members and non-members. This has enabled it to remain relevant and influential. I am looking forward to working with the BEC, my goal is to make sure while it remains the most effective employer organization in Barbados, its successes are shared with the rest of the Caribbean employer organizations. In this regard, I am looking forward to championing the Decent Work Agenda which is based on four strategic objectives, namely (a) guaranteeing rights at work, (b) creating opportunities to secure decent work, (c) enhancing coverage and effectiveness of social protection for all workers and (d) promoting tripartism and social dialogue. Furthermore, the BEC plays a critical role in representing the voice of the Caribbean employers organizations in the ILO Governing Body and is a member of the IOE. This is an important representation for a number of reasons, (i) to make sure that issues of critical importance to the Caribbean employers organizations are taken into consideration in decision-making and (ii) to ensure that resources are allocated to advance the Caribbean employers organizations policy and developmental agenda. I am pleased that BEC has successfully managed to domesticate and institutionalize some of the knowledge gained from ILO capacity building programmes. Recently, the BEC participated in the ILO training on ‘Greening Economies, Enterprises and Jobs, the role of Employer Organizations in the promotion of environmentally sustainable enterprises’, the ILO is pleased to see that an initiative is established in Barbados and a Green Framework developed to facilitate the greening of Barbados economies and that BEC is leading this initiative. The ILO will continue its capacity building efforts in Barbados and I am highly honored to be at the forefront in this regard. A lot of work lies ahead of us, and I have no doubt that just like the Compass, the BEC will continue working with government and the unions in determining the direction of economic, social and labour policies in Barbados. I also take this time to recognise Barbados’ 50th anniversary of independence and 60 years of BEC’s existence! Thanks for your warm Caribbean welcome and best wishes.
Vanessa Phala www.BarbadosEmployers.com
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