Unions must lead in COVID fight

Earlier this month, Industrial Court President Deborah Thomas-Felix sent shock waves across those operating in our sinking economy and overburdened health care system when she declared that employers cannot make vaccines mandatory in the workplace without dialogue between employer and employee or the involvement of trade unions.

Ironically in the UK, where workers are back on the job, unions pushed for workers to be vaccinated as frontline to safeguard their members’ lives and jobs.

This is not unreasonable since, according to COVID trackers, over 4.5 million people have died globally.

It’s a real thing. The world has administered six billion doses of COVID vaccines to 3.4 billion people.

In countries with high vaccination percentages–UK-90 per cent, US-60 per cent, people are returning to work.

A large percentage of the 60 per cent of unvaccinated people in T&T still don’t understand that though you can get COVID-19 after being vaccinated, you won’t get seriously ill and die of it. Union leaders have not grasped this nor passed this on to their members.

I asked legal luminary and former president of the Senate Timothy Hamel-Smith for his opinion of Thomas-Felix’s statement. This is what he said: “What people missed is Thomas-Felix implied that Government, not employers, should introduce the regulatory environment to mandate vaccines.

“The PM started that by creating safe zones from October 11 where only vaccinated people will be allowed in gyms, entertainment venues, restaurants etc.

“Thomas-Felix’s statement was interpreted narrowly. In fairness, she recognised we face a dilemma we never experienced before, which requires dialogue.

“The discussion should revolve around the common good for the greatest number of people in T&T.

The virus could seriously harm or kill an employee and those around him, which will warrant the requirement that employees be vaccinated. If people don’t vaccinate, we cannot protect ourselves, especially now the Delta is here. We’ve all seen the photos globally, from India to New York, where people run frantically for oxygen, ambulances, morgues.

We’ve seen the photos of hospital overload where very sick people are dying in corridors.

“The vaccine is not perfect, but it’s the only thing we have available, and it’s not a cureall. You can still get sick from the virus, but you won’t die.

“Trade unions are here for union dues. If unions fail to encourage their members to take the vaccine, and they can’t return to work safely, it has the ripple effect of business collapsing and employment collapsing. If employment collapses, we will have marauding gangs going across the country. When bellies are hungry when children are crying for food, no one is safe. Once the centre cannot hold life as we know, it will collapse.

“I didn’t hear the word productivity in Thomas-Felix’s statement.

“In industrial relations, everyone wants prosperity, more pay, better conditions, but the cost of prosperity requires a strong work ethic, and more productivity and Trinidad is a place where investors come, where things get done. If workers stay home, like Customs on the go-slow, all they want will not happen.

“If people don’t come to work or fall sick and die from being infected at work, we get the horrendous opposite of what we want.

“Employers have a responsibility to safeguard as many people from this disease as they can.

Trade unions will be asked which one will you prefer? Are we going for vaccination or a reduced number of employees? When people are sick, and without jobs, the reality will hit home. The union leaders must lead. They must stand up and demonstrate that they have employees’ interests at heart, just like their colleagues in countries where union members are vaccinated and back to work.

“Thomas-Felix is saying you have to treat people with respect and listen to them. I agree with that.

“Religion is not a rational belief, but you must respect those who say they don’t want the vaccine for religious reasons. They are not compelled to take the vaccine, but they will have to stay at home.

“The vaccines aren’t the perfect answer. But it’s all we have. “When you are not vaccinated, you bring in new variants. People touting Ivermectin don’t realise it’s taken after you already have COVID, and for many, it’s too late, and in a collapsing health system, you won’t even get those treatments.

You will end up lying in a corridor unattended.

“Political leaders of every stripe ought to leave baggage at home and untie under one platform to save our citizens’ lives, urge everyone to follow the science, listen to your doctor and not unqualified people with their own agenda on social media.

“Everyone needs to fight against death and destitution together.

There is no way to stay in your corner and stay safe, and we all go down together or survive together.”