Tourism and transportation workers’ unions to discuss impact of COVID-19 on livelihoods during ABWU-hosted meeting

The Antigua and Barbuda Workers’ Union is hosting a Caribbean workshop – “Prospects and Challenges for Tourism Industry Workers and their Unions in a Post-COVID Period” – put on by the International Transport Workers Federation (ITF).

Delegates from across the region have converged on Antigua and Barbuda for the workshop, which runs from today, April 4, to April 6.

The Union is an affiliate of the ITF, and its General Secretary, David Massiah, serves as the Global President for the ITF’s Tourism Section and Sub-Regional Coordinator for the Caribbean. 

He describes the workshop as “an opportunity for us in the Caribbean to reevaluate our position following the COVID-19 pandemic.” 

Massiah says the event is also a strong demonstration of the international organization’s support for the region.  

Workshop facilitators will include Daniel Hawkins, from ITF’s Rio de Janeiro office, as well as Rhea Chatterjee and Shorna McCormack from its London office. 

Participants will include affiliate unions from Jamaica, Barbados, Grenada, St. Lucia, and Dominica that represent workers in airports, seaports and the wider tourism industry.  They will discuss and map the impacts of the pandemic on the livelihoods of tourism and transport workers across the Caribbean. 

The gathering is also aimed at presenting the ITF’s global strategy to strengthen unions and grow membership, particularly in the tourism industry.