KINGSTON, Jamaica — The island’s two major trade unions – the Bustamante Industrial Trade union (BITU) and the National Workers union (NWU)- have accused Chinese construction firm, COMPLANT, of union busting on their Negril hotel site.

In a joint release Tuesday, the unions claim that COMPLANT is guilty of sending home approximately 30 of its 80 construction workers on the site, for applying for union membership and demanding that they be given pay advice(slips) with their wages.

Alden Brown, spokesman for the BITU told OBSERVER ONLINE yesterday that the unions have requested the intervention of both the Minister with responsibility for works Dr Horace Chang, and the Ministry of Labour and Social Security (MLSS) to intervene.

“The unions are insisting that swift action must be taken in this case, because this has become the route that the entire expatriate construction community has adopted and it is a blatant act of union busting,” Brown added.

ONLINE OBSERVER understands that multimillion-dollar project, said to be an initiative of Mexican investors, which is being undertaken by the Chinese firm COMPLANT, also employs a large number of Chinese workers, which has led to concerns being raised by residents and building contractors in the area.

Balford Henry