AT least two private firms have accrued significant savings from measures implemented under an 18-month push by the Jamaica Productivity Centre (JPC) to intervene and consult on waste reduction initiatives across the public and private sectors.

Last Thursday, state minister in the labour ministry, Andrew Gallimore, said that the two private sector companies realised combined savings of US$2.5 million dollars per annum based on productivity improvement interventions conducted by the JPC, while delivering an address at the Kiwanis Club of North St Andrew.

According to Gallimore, since January 2009, the JPC team has conducted interventions and consultations at 22 private and five public entities, focusing on productivity-linked wage systems, and non-monetary compensation systems, among other things.

For instance, an Energy Conservation Programme at the Ministry of Labour and Social Security, which has been implemented in two of the ministry’s largest office buildings, North Street and Heroes Circle, has resulted in a total year to date cost saving of $6.3 million.

The initiative augurs well for Jamaica in the context of low productivity levels.

“What the statistics reveal is horrendous. In 1997, the average worker in Trinidad was three times more productive than the average worker in Jamaica and this gap has grown to approximately five times that in the past 10 years,” said Gallimore. “This simply means that the average worker in Trinidad will be able to enjoy a much higher standard of living than his Jamaican counterpart.”

“Declining productivity affects our ability to compete. It affects our ability to import and export and this leads to a decline in our foreign exchange earnings.”

The key sectors of the Jamaican economy to have recorded negative growth in output per worker in the past few years include: agriculture, forestry and fishing sector recorded, which declined by 1.8 per cent; wholesale, retail, hotels and restaurants, down 1.4 per cent; and construction and installation -2.3 per cent.

“Interestingly, these sectors employ approximately 52 per cent of the Jamaican labour force; this means the majority of our workers are getting poorer and poorer.”

Gallimore said that the Government is committed to improving national productivity, adding that, since 2007, the administration has bolstered the resources of the JPC, by increasing the technical staff complement from two to nine and support staff count from four to five.

The JPC is the national organisation responsible for promoting and facilitating productivity enhancement at the national, sectoral, industry and enterprise levels. The centre is a tripartite organisation comprising the Ministry of Labour and Social Security, the Jamaica Confederation of Trade Unions and the Jamaica Employers’ Federation.