BUSINESS STAKEHOLDERS are warming to the suggestion by Commerce and Industry Minister Donville Inniss that Barbados should take on the challenge of opening its doors on a 24/7 basis.
This consensus is coming after Inniss met with the business and labour players at the Baobab Towers, Warrens, St Michael, yesterday. Those present at a Press briefing to bring the media up to date were Cedric Murrell, president of the Congress of Trade Unions and Staff Associations of Barbados; Ian Gooding-Edghill, president of the Barbados Employers Confederation; and Lisa Cummins, executive director of the Barbados Coalition of Service Industries.
Murrell said a “24/7 Barbados” would create more jobs and more earnings.
“Labour has a particular interest because this speaks really to labour productivity and efficiency and the opportunity for workers to be more gainfully employed in terms of jobs and at the same time, more earnings,” he said.
Both Gooding-Edghill and Cummins lauded the work of the minister in engaging national dialogue on the topic.
For Inniss it was a matter of urgency that Barbados get “on board with becoming a 24/7 society soon, [or] it will find itself left behind . . . .”
“For us it is not a matter of if, but when. This is a matter which we can no longer postpone if we really want Barbados to become a far more productive economy and society,” Inniss insisted.
He said judging from the response of yesterday’s meeting, both the public and private sector organisations were on board.
The minister said a major issue discussed was the need to improve workplace efficiency and productivity.
“Discussions also centred not just on extended hours, but also on how we can boost efficiency and productivity within specific areas . . . . ” (RB)
