From left are Lewis, Nelson and Lopez

Trudy Simpson and Devon Evans , Gleaner Writers

PRIVATE SECTOR employers yesterday, again, warned trade unions to 'exercise restraint' when asking for increased wages and salaries for private sector employees.

But this has been dismissed as "not necessary" by Dwight Nelson, president of the Jamaica Confederation of Trade Unions (JCTU).

Private sector interests, meeting at the Jamaica Employers' Federation's 22nd Annual Convention said that demands for huge increases in wages and salaries could lead to mark up in prices. This will make the cost of living more difficult for public sector workers, whose salaries have in effect been frozen for two years, as a result of a landmark Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) signed between the Government and the unions.

"Trade unions should exercise some restraint when making claims for private sector employees. Whatever arrangement

is going to come, they should bear in mind the national interest and what effect runaway increases will have," said Herbert Lewis, president of the (JEF) yesterday at the Convention, at the Renais-sance Jamaica Grande Resort in Ocho Rios.

But according to Mr. Nelson, "I don't think that is necessary. The cost of unionised employees to entities is negligible when compared to other administrative costs so what companies should do is seek to reduce administrative costs and not seek to punish the workers."

However, Mr. Lewis said it is difficult to expect that only people in the public service ­ some of whom operate on three per cent wage increase on salaries ­ to bear the brunt of the pressure. What needs to be done, he said, is to look at the national interest as far as wages and salaries increases are concerned.

POINT

This is a point supported by Beverley Lopez, head of the Private Sector Organisation of Jamaica (PSOJ), which spearheads Partnership for Progress.

Partnership for Progress is an initiative which aims to construct a social partnership including the private sector, unions and Government to ensure that Jamaica's socio-economic climate improves through a combination of expenditure cuts, wage restraint, more aggressive privatisation and a voluntary swap of high yielding local domestic debt for lower initial yielding debt. A draft MoU is being worked on which includes private sector proposals such as how to improve education, reduce crime, improve on the tax threshold and encourage more private sector organisations to be tax compliant "to ease the burden of PAYE (Pay As You Earn)".

"Because there is an MoU, we have to ask that when unions are making claims on the private sector, they must recognise that when you are calculating your mark-up, you must look at the wage bill," Ms. Lopez said.

MARK-UPS

She added that if the private sector is talking about mark-ups, in terms of the MoU, it has to be cognisant of the impact of wages and salaries. "There has to be some relationship between what prevails in the private sector and what prevails
in the public sector.
You clearly don't want to aggravate disparity."

But she said the relationship would have limits and that it would be difficult to have fixed rates in terms of salaries.

"We shouldn't just say that if that's what prevails in the public sector, that must prevail in the private sector because some thought must be given to productivity and profitability in each company."

She added though that private sector members must rethink how they look at the salary package, with incentives for production.