#Kingston, October 23, 2018 – Jamaica – Minister of Industry, Commerce, Agriculture and Fisheries, Hon. Audley Shaw, is calling on employers to maintain good relations with their employees, given that a local study has revealed that approximately 24 per cent of employees are disengaged.

“The National Employee Engagement Report Jamaica 2016, which was designed and executed by the Jamaica Business Development Corporation (JBDC) Project Management and Project Research Department, revealed that at the national level, 75.5 per cent of the labour force is engaged, with 41.5 per cent being actively engaged and 35 per cent being moderately engaged. This means that 24.5 per cent or approximately one in four employees is disengaged either moderately or actively,” the Minister said.

He was speaking at the JBDC Employee Engagement Conference 2018, which was held at the Jamaica Conference Centre in downtown Kingston on Monday (October 22).

Mr. Shaw said there is a problem of falling standards and human underdevelopment in the country, and, as such, he is calling on employers to ensure that the standards of their employees are held high and they do not feel underdeveloped.

“Every employer has an opportunity to collectively begin to treat with that crisis by treating their employees in a humane way, giving them the opportunity for professional development on the job; teach them, motivate them about their objectives and the mission of the organisation,” the Minister said.

“Lift up their levels of personal outputs and personal productivity; give them pride at the workplace. We have a responsibility to improve employee engagement, in particular the micro, small [and] medium-sized enterprises, if we are to drive up productivity and prosperity,” he added.   Mr. Shaw said the Government wants to see more employees actively engaged and more motivated to achieve the “vision for a better Jamaica”.

“Our commitment is to move towards the 2030 Vision, which has been focusing on stabilising our economy, creating a more business-friendly environment, stimulating local investment and unleashing the energies of our people,” the Minister explained.

Mr. Shaw said the world’s top-performing organisations understand that employee participation is a force that drives productivity, profit, customer satisfaction and loyalty, retention of valuable staff and other key performance outcomes.

The conference will be held until October 23 under the theme ‘Disturb. Reconnect. Engage’.

It is being hosted for approximately 500 employers with the objective of empowering and encouraging them to transform their workplaces into spaces that inspire their employees, and offer the kind of leadership and appropriate management systems that will enable their employees to understand and accept their role as important stakeholders in business processes, and as key players in achieving sustainable productivity.

Release: JIS

Contact: Ainsworth Morris

Photo Captions:

Header: Minister of Industry, Commerce, Agriculture and Fisheries, Hon. Audley Shaw, addresses participants in the Jamaica Business Development Corporation (JBDC) Employee Engagement Conference 2018 at the Jamaica Conference Centre in downtown Kingston on Monday (October 22).

Insert: Minister of Industry, Commerce, Agriculture and Fisheries, Hon. Audley Shaw (second right), reading his signed copy of the book, ‘If Caterpillars Can Fly, So Can I’, from Author and Motivational Speaker, Alvin Day (second left), at the Jamaica Business Development Corporation (JBDC) Employee Engagement Conference 2018, which was held at Jamaica Conference Centre in downtown Kingston on Monday (October 22). Sharing in the moment are Small Business Director, Scotiabank Jamaica, Avril Leonce (left) and Chief Executive Officer, JBDC, Valerie Veira.

Photos: Michael Sloely