Trade union leaders in Dominica and across the Caribbean are welcoming a recent advisory opinion issued by the International Court of Justice (ICJ) affirming protections connected to the right to strike, describing the ruling as a major victory for workers and organised labour internationally.
The advisory opinion, delivered on Thursday, has been interpreted by labour organisations as reinforcing the principle that workers maintain the right to industrial action when negotiations and dialogue between employers and employees fail. The decision has generated strong reactions throughout regional and international trade union movements, many of which had waited years for clarification on the issue.
General Secretary of the Dominica Trade Union Congress and Public Service Union, Thomas Letang, said unions had been deeply concerned about the possible outcomes because an unfavourable ruling could have weakened collective bargaining rights globally.
Sub-Regional Secretary for the Caribbean at Public Services International, Sandra Massiah of Barbados, described the decision as an important reaffirmation of long-established labor principles linked to freedom of association and collective bargaining rights.
“You cannot have the right to organize and bargain collectively without the right to strike being implicitly understood,” Massiah explained while stressing that strikes are usually used only after negotiations break down completely.
President of the Public Service Union, Steve Joseph, also welcomed the ruling, calling it a landmark moment for workers, unions, governments, and employers involved in labor relations through the International Labour Organization system.
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