FirstCaribbean Tries To Improve Union Relationships

by Amanda Banks, Tax-News.com, London

08 July 2005

FirstCaribbean International Bank signed an agreement in Barbados this week with eleven of the Caribbean's main trade unions setting out the roles and responsibilities of the partners, in an attempt to resolve conflictual problems which have dogged management/union relationships in the region.

Trade unions from Barbados, Antigua and Barbuda, the Bahamas, Belize, Jamaica, St. Lucia, St. Maarten, St. Vincent, Grenada and Dominica have signed up to the agreement, which doesn't however replace existing collective bargaining arrangements.

Director of the ILO’s Programme for the Promotion of Management Labour Cooperation, Dr. Andre-Vincent Henry cautioned both parties not to expect that decades of suspicion and low levels of trust will suddenly disappear as a result of the signing. He said that far too often, workers and managers play a blame game, accusing each other of being the major hurdle to productivity improvement.

FirstCaribbean was formed three years ago by a merger of Barclays' and CIBC's regional banking networks and has assets of US$9bn. The bank operates in 26 Caribbean islands including Anguilla, Antigua, The Bahamas, Barbados, Belize, The British Virgin Islands, The Cayman Islands, Dominica, Grenada, Jamaica, St Kitts & Nevis, St Lucia, St Maarten, St Vincent and the Grenadines and The Turks & Caicos Islands.

Last January, FirstCaribbean claimed to be the first bank to launch internet and telephone banking services to its customers across all the countries in its network. The new services give all its customers the ability to view their balances across all types of accounts, including chequing, savings, loans and time deposits, in any location across the bank’s regional network. The bank says it has invested $50 million in a state-of-the-art technology platform and expects to be able to offer internet and telephone service wire transfers and bill payments later in 2005.

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