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Jamaica - Compensation & Benefit Legislation

CAPITAL

Kingston

 

CLIMATE

Tropical climate; hot and humid with a temperate interior.

 

LANGUAGES

English and Creole.

 

LEGAL SYSTEM

Jamaica’s legal system is based on English common law. Jamaica has not accepted compulsory ICJ jurisdiction.

 

CURRENCY

Jamaican Dollar (1 USD = 47.79000 JMD as of May 1, 2002).

 

JAMAICA - COST-OF-LIVING

ERI's Relocation Assessor is a recommended source for cost-of-living data.

 

JAMAICA - EMBASSY/CONSULATES

U. S. Embassy at Kingston

2 Oxford Road

Kingston 5

Jamaica, West Indies

Telephone: [876] 935-6053

Fax: [876] 929-3637

http://usembassy.state.gov/kingston/

 

Embassy of Jamaica at Washington D.C.

1520 New Hampshire Avenue N.W.

Washington D.C. 20036

Telephone: (202) 452-0660

Fax: (202) 452-0081

http://www.emjam-usa.org

 

JAMAICA - HOLIDAYS

JAMAICA – LEAVE

Annual Leave: Employers provide paid annual leave.

 

Maternity Leave: 12 weeks – 100% of pay for 8 weeks (paid by employer)

 

JAMAICA - MINIMUM AGE

The Juvenile Act provides that children under the age of 12 shall not be employed except by parents or guardians, and that such employment may be only in domestic, agricultural, or horticultural work.

 

(Section 6.d. Acceptable Conditions of Work, Jamaica – Report of Human Rights Practices, 2001, U.S. Department of State.)

 

JAMAICA - MINIMUM REMUNERATION

The minimum wage was raised in 1999 to J$1,200 (approximately $30) per week. This wage is considered to be inadequate to provide a decent standard of living for a worker and family. Most workers are paid more than the legal minimum, except in the tourism industry.

 

(Section 6.e. Acceptable Conditions of Work, Jamaica – Report of Human Rights Practices, 2001, U.S. Department of State.)

 

JAMAICA - REMUNERATION

ERI's Geographic and Salary Assessors are recommended sources for international remuneration covering 189 countries.

 

JAMAICA - REPORT OF HUMAN RIGHTS PRACTICES (2001, U.S. DEPARTMENT OF STATE)

Section 6 Worker Rights

 

a. The Right of Association

 

The law provides for the right to form or join a trade union, and unions function freely and independently of the Government. The Labor Relations and Industrial Disputes Act (LRIDA) defines worker rights. There is a spectrum of national unions, some of which are affiliated with political parties. Approximately 15 percent of the work force is unionized.

 

The LRIDA neither authorizes nor prohibits the right to strike, but strikes do occur. Striking workers can interrupt work without criminal liability but cannot be assured of keeping their jobs. Other than in the case of prison guards, there is no evidence of any workers losing their jobs over a strike action. Workers in 10 broad categories of "essential services" are prohibited from striking, a provision the International Labor Organization (ILO) repeatedly criticized as overly inclusive. There were no significant strikes during the year.

 

Beginning in December 1999, prison guards conducted an islandwide sick-out to protest the proposed reappointment of the Commissioner of Corrections. When 800 guards failed to comply with an order to return to work, the authorities placed them on forced leave at one-fourth pay in January 2000. In March 2000, the Government brought disciplinary charges against the guards and declared the work stoppage illegal. Approximately 100 were judged legitimately sick and allowed to return to work. In May 2000, hearings before the Public Services Commission began to examine the charges against the approximately 700 guards still on forced leave. During the year, the hearings proceeded on a case-by-case basis and 46 guards were dismissed. The University and Allied Workers Union has charged that the former National Security Minister attempted to negotiate with selected guards individually.

 

All major trade unions are affiliated with some major regional or international labor organizations.

 

b. The Right to Organize and Bargain Collectively

 

There were no reports of government interference with union organizing efforts during the year. Judicial and police authorities effectively enforce the LRIDA and other labor regulations. All parties are committed firmly to collective bargaining in contract negotiations, even in some nonunion settings. An independent Industrial Disputes Tribunal (IDT) hears cases where management and labor fail to reach agreement. Any cases not resolved by the IDT pass to the civil courts. The IDT generally handles 35 to 40 cases each year. Most are decided within 90 days, but some take longer to resolve due to the complexity of the dispute or delays requested by the parties. The LRIDA prohibits antiunion discrimination, and employees may not be fired solely for union membership. The authorities enforced this law effectively.

 

Collective bargaining is denied in a bargaining unit if no single union represents at least 40 percent of the workers in the unit in question, or when the union seeking recognition for collective bargaining purposes does not obtain 50 percent of the votes of the total number of workers (whether or not they are affiliated with the union). The ILO's Committee of Experts (COE) considers that where there is no collective bargaining agreement and where a trade union does not obtain 50 percent of the votes of the total number of workers, that union should be able to negotiate at least on behalf of its own members. The COE requested the Government to take necessary measures to amend this legislation. The Government contends this would unduly lengthen negotiations.

 

Domestic labor laws apply equally to the "free zones" (export processing zones). However, there are no unionized companies in any of the 3 publicly owned zones, which employ 9,079 workers.

 

Organizers attribute this circumstance to resistance by foreign owners in the zones to organizing efforts, but attempts to organize plants within the zones continue. Company-controlled "workers' councils" handle grievance resolution at most free zone companies, but they do not negotiate wages and conditions with management. Management determines wages and benefits within the free zones; these are generally as good as or better than those in similar industries outside the zones. The Ministry of Labor is required to perform comprehensive factory inspections in the free zones once each year, and in practice it performs them at 6- to 9-month intervals. There were no reports of substandard or unsafe conditions in the free zone factories.

 

c. Prohibition of Forced or Compulsory Labor

 

The Constitution does not specifically prohibit forced or compulsory labor by either adults or children, but there were no reports that this practice occurs.

 

d. Status of Child Labor Practices and Minimum Age for Employment

 

The Juvenile Act provides that children under the age of 12 shall not be employed except by parents or guardians, and that such employment may be only in domestic, agricultural, or horticultural work. However, enforcement is uneven. Children under the age of 12 are seen peddling goods and services on city streets. There are also reports that underage children are employed illegally in fishing communities and in prostitution.

 

A 1994 UNICEF report stated that 4.6 percent of children below the age of 16 worked to help support their households. In December 1999, the Minister of Labor, Welfare, and Sport gave a speech in which she stated that 23,000 children were engaged in child labor.

 

In September 2000, the Government signed a memorandum of understanding with the ILO in preparation to ratify ILO Convention 182 on the prohibition and elimination of the "worst forms" of child labor. The memorandum provides funding and technical assistance to assess the country's child labor situation. An ILO representative overseeing the project is assigned to the Labor Ministry and conducting various assessments of the problem. While the Constitution does not prohibit forced or bonded labor by children, such practices were not known to occur.

 

e. Acceptable Conditions of Work

 

The minimum wage, raised from $20 (J$800) to $30 (J$1,200) per week in 1999, widely is considered to be inadequate to provide a decent standard of living for a worker and family. Most workers are paid more than the legal minimum, except in the tourism industry. Work over 40 hours per week or 8 hours per day must be compensated at overtime rates, a provision that is observed widely.

 

The Labor Ministry's Industrial Safety Division sets and enforces industrial health and safety standards, which are considered adequate. Public service staff reductions in the Ministries of Labor, Finance, National Security, and the Public Service have contributed to the difficulties in enforcing workplace regulations.

 

Industrial accident rates, particularly in the bauxite and alumina industry, remained low. The law provides workers with the right to remove themselves from dangerous work situations without jeopardy to their continued employment if they are trade union members or covered by the Factories Act. The law does not specifically protect other categories of workers in those circumstances.

 

f. Trafficking in Persons

 

The law does not prohibit specifically trafficking in persons; however, there are laws against assault and fraud, and other laws establish various immigration and customs regulations. There were no confirmed reports that persons were trafficked to, from, or within the country.

 

JAMAICA - SOCIAL SECURITY

Social Security Office of International Programs:

 

http://www.ssa.gov/SSA_Home.html

 

JAMAICA - STANDARD WORKWEEK

Work over 40 hours per week or 8 hours per day must be compensated at overtime rates.

 

(Section 6.e. Acceptable Conditions of Work, Jamaica – Report of Human Rights Practices, 2001, U.S. Department of State.)