1. 21st Century IndustrialRelations-
ConfrontationorCooperation
KESTON NANCOO
HRMATT’s 9th Biennial Conference
Hilton Trinidad & Conference Center
Date: Tuesday 14th May, 2013

2. Current industrial relations practice in the
Caribbean has been influenced by the varied
historical experiences in the territories.
Extremism of various forms impacted on the
industrial relations climate.
The 1970s and1980s ushered in significant changes
in industrial relations.
The oil crisis of the 1970s further exacerbated the
situation.
HRMATT’s 9th Biennial Conference – May 13th & 14th, 2013 2

3. The Global Economic environment continues to
be fragile.
T&T’s ranking on the GCI-2012, is 84 out of 144
countries moving from 81 out of 142 last year.
Far too many challenges standing in the way of
Global competitiveness.
Crime;
Inefficient government bureaucracy;
Poor work ethic of the national workforce;
Corruption.
HRMATT’s 9th Biennial Conference – May 13th & 14th, 2013
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4. Rising debt to GDP ratio and overall economy
stagnating.
Greater dependence on petroleum sector.
Spill over of Booming Tradable sector strike
activities on non tradable activity and non
booming tradable sector strike activity.
Appreciating real effective exchange rate- classic
Dutch disease symptom.
Too many workers employed on elementary
occupations.
HRMATT’s 9th Biennial Conference – May 13th & 14th, 2013
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5. Our current IR climate can be described as
confrontational, adversarial, driven by
positional bargaining which is fuelled by lack of
trust, mutual respect and an unwillingness by
parties to make a commitment to a common
sense of purpose.
Man-days lost first quarter 2012- 178,790; total
for 2009/10/11- 140,354.
HRMATT’s 9th Biennial Conference – May 13th & 14th, 2013
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6. Economic –dealing with competitive pressures
Changing nature of work
Weakening of union commitment among
younger workers and its inability to penetrate
new frontiers.
Seeing change not as an opportunity to explore
new possibilities but as threats to their role.
World Bank and IMF fuelling the flames of
industrial conflict.
HRMATT’s 9th Biennial Conference – May 13th & 14th, 2013
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7. HRMATT’s 9th Biennial Conference – May 13th & 14th, 2013
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8. No time to argue about who has the
responsibility for handling the hoses.
How do we move beyond Adversarial
bargaining?
The future state must be driven and informed
by:
Tripartite cooperation
Labour market reform
Economic upturn
HRMATT’s 9th Biennial Conference – May 13th & 14th, 2013
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9. Five Attributes and Strengths:-
Shared Responsibility;
Common Understanding;
Mutual Trust and Respect;
Mutual Benefits;
Continued Efforts
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10. Creating Dialogue
Creating visions of the future
Creating a shared vision
Building Forums, starting conversations
Building trust and mutual respect
Overcoming Adversarial histories
Navigating major business discontinuities
Renegotiating the terms of the relationship
Reconstructing the relationship on a different
foundation
HRMATT’s 9th Biennial Conference – May 13th & 14th, 2013
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11. Need to understand the power structure of the Labour
– Management relationship;
Expand the domain of understanding and agreement
which result in the discovery of similarities between
parties/ adherence to the same values; - (7-S
framework);
Practice the art of Empathic listening- seeking first to
understand instead of trying to be understood first;
Union participation in defining company strategy
rather than information sharing;
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12. What is the Purpose of the Union and
Management?
What are the practical values to achieve that
purpose?
What ethical and moral level determines the key
decisions parties make?
How do we define goals and results so they are
consistent with the parties purpose and values?
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13. Need to work together to discover or invent a
path that will resolve the tensions created by
the challenges of the Global economic
environment.
Find leaders who share the vision and who will
assist in exploring possible paths.
Engagement in co-production and recognizing
real interdependencies.
Broadening of perspectives and views of each
others interest about the future.
HRMATT’s 9th Biennial Conference – May 13th & 14th, 2013
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14. The important fact about “enlightened
despotism”- also the one fact that ‘enlightened
despots’ always forget- is that while it appears as
enlightenment to those in power, it is despotism
pure and simple to those under it. Peter Drucker, 1969
“The tragedy of life is not death. The Tragedy of
life is commitment undefined; conviction
undeclared and service unfulfilled.”- Vachel Lindsay
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