Special measures were put in place to strengthen the delivery of employment and labour services, while continuing to provide support to the most vulnerable Jam-aicans, including persons with disabilities and the elderly.
Labour Division
• Industrial Disputes Tribunal (IDT) Western Division office was officially opened in St. James.
• Agreements signed with the Jamaica Household Workers’ Union (JHWU) and University of Technology (UTech) to promote the services of the Ministry’s Labour Market Information System (LMIS).
• COVID-19 Labour Market Task Force assembled to address issues affecting employers and employees.
• The Ministry opened its parish office in St. Ann’s Bay. The new two-storey, state-of-the-art facility, built at a cost of more than $500 million, is designed to enhance service delivery to the people of St. Ann.
Social Division
• An additional $1 billion was channelled into the Programme of Advancement Through Health and Education (PATH) to increase cash grants to beneficiaries.
• The Ministry received $40 million from UNICEF Jamaica to help some of the country’s most vulner-able households cope with the crippling impact of COVID-19. The funding covers cash transfer payments via PATH for approximately 2,700 families with children with disabilities, as well as pregnant and lactating women.
• Early encashment of pension vouchers was facilitated through post offices.
• $40 million was transferred to the Ministry to provide support to persons living with disabilities.
• The Ministry acquired two mobile units to promote the various benefits and services to citizens in rural sections of the island. The air-conditioned buses, outfitted with office areas, client number tracking systems, public address systems, and sanitising stations, were retrofitted at a cost of approximately $25.5 million with funding from the Government and the Inter-American Development Bank (IDB).
• The ‘Innovative Approaches to the Development of Children with Intellectual Disabilities’ technical cooperation agreement was signed. This inter-vention seeks to provide direct support to children with intellectual disabilities and their parents, through identifying, adapting and testing effective parent-centred therapeutic approaches.
• Digicel Foundation donated 600 tablet computers to support students registered with the Jamaica Council for Persons with Disabilities (JCPD).
