CARICOM Ministers of Labour have agreed to adopt a harmonised and sustained approach to key labour issues affecting the free movement of people within the region.
The agreement was reached during the Thirty-fourth Special Meeting of the Council for Human and Social Development (COHSOD) on Labour, held on April 8 in Georgetown, Guyana. The meeting was chaired by Grenada’s Attorney General and Minister for Legal Affairs, Labour and Consumer Affairs, Senator the Hon. Claudette Joseph. It brought together CARICOM Ministers responsible for labour, technical experts, and regional stakeholders.
The discussions aimed to solidify a unified position on critical labour matters ahead of the International Labour Conference (ILC), which is scheduled to take place from June 2–13, 2025.
The meeting came at a pivotal time in the rollout of the CARICOM Single Market and Economy (CSME). CARICOM Secretary-General Dr. Carla Barnett noted that most Member States have signed the Protocol on Enhanced Cooperation, a significant step toward regional integration.
“This means that those countries that are ready to move forward with free movement will be able to do so. If everybody wants to move forward together simultaneously, that would be the most desirable of all the options,” Dr. Barnett said.
She also underscored the importance of the Labour Ministers’ input. “We look forward to the decisions of this meeting to guide us at the Secretariat on how we can help to ensure that the views of Labour Ministers – the positions with respect to labour in the Community – are properly supported,” she added.
Chairperson Senator Claudette Joseph emphasized the significance of the dialogue on free movement, pointing out that CARICOM Heads of Government had set a deadline for implementation. “We discussed the question of the free movement of people. CARICOM had set a deadline to implement free movement. We are very close to having ratification of the protocol that was developed,” she said.
The Protocol on Enhanced Cooperation was adopted by CARICOM Heads of Government at the Thirty-Third Inter-Sessional Meeting held in Belize in March 2022. It allows for deeper cooperation among willing Member States, even if others are not yet ready to participate fully.
