The Joint Trade Union Movement’s unimplemented 2010 Workers’ Agenda has been incorporated into the People’s National Movement draft labour policy.
The five-year-old document was first presented to the People’s Partnership back in April 2010 but was never used over the five-year period of its administration.
JTUM leader Ancel Roget met with PNM leader Dr Keith Rowley yesterday at the Banking and Industrial Workers Union (BIGWU) office in Barataria and, after a four-hour long session, the two men said they had agreed to most of the points presented by the labour group.
While the Workers’ Agenda is a comprehensive document, both groups hashed out eight priority points to be worked on immediately.
However, Roget denied that the PNM’s support for the Workers’ Agenda would garner union support for the party.
He said he was pleased with the PNM draft document but was still overly cautious about pledging political support for any party after being “burned badly” by the current administration over the past five years.
Rowley said while the Workers’ Agenda influenced the PNM draft document, there was no wholehearted acceptance of all that labour had put forward.
Both parties said they would continue to fine tune the agenda in the national interest.
The JTUM presented the document to three political parties, including the Independent Liberal Party and the Movement for Social Justice, last October.
The MSJ responded immediately, whereas the PNM was the second political party to meet with JTUM.
The labour movement is expected to meet with the ILP next week to discuss its take on the Workers’ Agenda.