JAMAICAN trade unionists on Sunday joined with the leadership of the Bustamante Industrial Trade union (BITU) in celebrating its 85th anniversary.

The event took place at Webster Memorial Church, Half-Way-Tree Road in St Andrew, and was attended by a huge segment of its weekly Sunday church service members as well as trade unionists of the BITU, other trade union leaders, and Minister of National Security Dr Horace Chang, who represented Prime Minister Andrew Holness.

It also marked the start of the union’s week-long celebration of its founding in 1938 by late national hero and founder of both the BITU and the Jamaica Labour Party (JLP), Sir Alexander Bustamante, as well the union’s determination to remain focused on workers’ rights and injustices.

Dr Chang in his address recalled that there was a time when industrial action, unrest, poverty, and discontent were the order of the day in Jamaica. He recalled that it was a difficult time for working class Jamaicans, particularly as they experienced “first-hand” the plight of poverty, unjust working conditions, and lack of hope that better was possible during their lifetime.

He said this 85th anniversary of the BITU is important in terms of reflection on “the history and the hardship and adversity” which demonstrated the power of solidarity and social well-being in achieving reform in Jamaica.

“It is this history that anchors us as we navigate the present challenges and put in place measures to ensure a better future for generations to come,” he argued.

Senator Kavan Gayle, BITU president, in a colourful presentation on Sir Alexander’s past performance, noted that during the 1938 labour crisis workers would recognise the union’s founder in his travels around the island, “as a tall, striking, middle-aged man, with a shock of unruly hair that reflected his unbridled energy”.

The service was conducted by the Rev Delroy Harris and the Rev Raymond Coke, and ended with a message from Bruce Scott, risk assurance leader for PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) in the Caribbean and a former president of the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Jamaica.

Also attending the service were union leaders Vincent Morrison, president of the Union of Clerical, Administrative and Supervisory Employees; James Francis, United Union of Jamaica; BITU vice-presidents Wesley Nelson and Alden Brown, as well as its organiser for eastern Jamaica, Ricardo Brown. The events will continue for the rest of this week.