geisha.kowlessar@guardian.co.tt
T&T’s society is deeply fractured in the middle and the working class is under extreme pressure says AMCHAM T&T’s CEO Nirad Tewarie.
However, no one expects the Government to solve all the problems and the private sector is more than willing to do its part, he added.
Tewarie was speaking at AMCHAM T&T’s 26th Annual Health, Safety, Security and Environment (HSSE) Conference and Exhibition held at the Hyatt Regency yesterday.
Saying the country is “at a crossroads” Tewarie added, “We can only do so through meaningful engagement, even if we don’t agree on everything from the get-go. This, therefore, is an appeal for more collaboration around shared objectives. This is a call to action. A call to make T&T more resilient—socially, economically and physically —not just for today but for decades and decades to come.”
Emphasising that “big ideas” need to be embraced Tewarie said there must be more commitment to building more trust by taking decisive action to achieve the incremental things that will show progress.
“Let us commit to listening and consulting more and better to create psychological safety to get more and better ideas so many of us are rowing in the same direction,” he added, emphasising that an “all-hands-on-deck approach” is needed to achieve resilience and in re-imagining HSSE.
Additionally, he said leadership, culture and psychological safety are absolutely critical to achieving results in a company and in a country.
According to Tewarie AMCHAM T&T has been advocating that the Government, private sector, academia and related institutions come together to develop a local tech sector as a new pillar of the economy.
Moreover, Tewarie said in building culture, the demonstration of small but tangible results aligned with the achievement of the vision is often missing.
“Too often, when people and organisations who want to help or use their lived experience to offer suggestions or advice are dismissed and branded as non-supporters to be ignored,” he added.
And president of AMCHAM T&T Toni Sirju-Ramnarine, who also spoke, said in today’s workplace it also means placing equal priority on creating psychologically safe spaces apart from creating physical safe spaces.
She also noted there’s no “right way” to create a mentally healthy workplace since all workplaces are different and while legislation is always helpful companies shouldn’t have to wait on the law to protect employees.
“Instead, as leaders, we must ensure that all levels of the workplace—this includes the board of directors, management, finance, human resources, and HSE departments—get involved to incorporate mental health at your workplace,” advised Sirju-Ramnarine.
She said there are so many facets that contribute to mental health.
“For example, what are we doing about stigma and discrimination or harassment, violence, and bullying in the workplace?
“These are very real but yet not fully ventilated issues that not only impact our employees’ well-being, but also our companies’ cultures,” she cited while reiterating that re-imagining HSSE therefore also must address matters of diversity, equity and inclusion.
