New Year Message 2026: From CTUSAB
As we welcome the New Year, the Congress of Trade Unions and Staff Associations of Barbados (CTUSAB) extend sincere greetings to all workers, trade unions, the Government, social partners, and the people of Barbados. This period of renewal calls for reflection on our journey, honest assessment of present realities, and a shared commitment to the path ahead.
Throughout 2025, the labour landscape re-affirmed that labour relations are fundamentally about people, dignity at work, family security, and sustainable national development. Despite complex challenges, CTUSAB remained steadfast in advocating for fairness, balance, and social justice through engagement, advocacy, and principled dialogue within the labour movement.
Looking forward, CTUSAB recognises the urgent need for internal renewal to ensure the Congress remains modern, responsive, and unified. Strengthening collaboration among affiliates, improving structures, and renewing outreach, including reconciliation with unions outside the Congress, are essential. A unified labour movement is critical, as history has shown that division weakens worker protection and undermines national stability.
CTUSAB acknowledges and commends the Government of Barbados for worker-focused initiatives, including progress in wages, appointments, leave provisions for teachers, and education reform. These gains reflect the value of sustained advocacy and social partnership.
As fiscal planning for 2026–2027 approaches, CTUSAB urges priority attention to Protective Services and nurses, whose frontline roles in national safety and health are indispensable. Equally important are teacher safety, improved working conditions, and addressing the challenges facing youth development to ensure schools remain safe and young people are equipped for the modern economy.
Job creation must remain central to national policy and be driven through coordinated action among the Ministries of Education, Labour, and Economic Affairs. Aligning education and training with labour market needs is essential to creating sustainable, decent employment, particularly for young people.
CTUSAB also expresses concern about the impact of crime and violence on workplaces. Worker safety, productivity, and well-being are inseparable from community safety. Addressing crime requires an holistic approach, including prevention, youth development, social intervention, and workplace safety measures developed in consultation with organised labour.
As we begin this New Year, CTUSAB renews its commitment to unity, dialogue, and collective action. We look forward to deeper collaboration with the Government of Barbados and all social partners, grounded in mutual respect and shared responsibility. CTUSAB stands ready to play its role in bringing balance, stability, and progress to labour relations in our country.
Above all, it is now imperative that CTUSAB, as a national trade union centre, is so recognised, respected and accorded with the status which ought to be shown by the government.
Let this be a year in which division gives way to unity, dialogue replaces discord, and collective purpose strengthens our national resolve. Together, we can continue building a Barbados where work is dignified, workers are protected, and development is shared by all.
On behalf of the leadership, affiliates and staff of the Congress of Trade Unions and Staff Associations of Barbados, best wishes are extended for a peaceful, productive, and prosperous New Year.
New Year’s Message from the President of Congress of Trade Unions and Staff Associations of Barbados (CTUSAB), Comrade Ryan Phillips
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