In a high-stakes diplomatic mission aimed at addressing deep-seated labor market challenges, a multi-stakeholder Haitian delegation traveled to Port of Spain, the capital of Trinidad and Tobago, on May 13, 2026, to hold a landmark working meeting with Trinidadian officials, International Labour Organization (ILO) representatives, labor union leaders and private sector stakeholders. The delegation was led by Marc-Elie Nelson, Haiti’s Minister of Social Affairs and Labor, and included top figures from Haiti’s key industry and labor groups: Radia Mauluk, President of the Association of Industries of Haiti (ADIH), Yvel Admettre, Secretary General of the Confederation of Public Sector Workers (CTSP), and Fignolé St-Cyr, Secretary General of the Autonomous Central of Haitian Workers (CATH).
During the meeting, Minister Nelson delivered a candid, comprehensive overview of Haiti’s current labor landscape, outlining the severe structural obstacles that have crippled the sector’s ability to function effectively. Key challenges he highlighted include the oversized informal economy that leaves millions of workers without basic protections, growing precarity in the limited formal employment sector, rising social unrest, outdated social dialogue frameworks, persistent gaps in labor inspection enforcement, and widespread institutional weaknesses in labor regulation and social safety net provision. Despite these significant headwinds, Nelson also outlined the concrete steps the Haitian government has already taken to improve conditions for workers and stabilize the market, including a recent minimum wage hike, expanded social assistance programs targeting the most vulnerable populations, and the creation of a new advisory council to set transparent pricing for petroleum products.
Nelson emphasized that Trinidad and Tobago’s decades of experience in building effective social dialogue systems and robust labor regulatory frameworks would be an invaluable resource for strengthening his ministry’s institutional capacity, allowing it to deliver more impactful outcomes for Haitian workers and businesses. In response, Leroy Baptiste, Trinidad and Tobago’s Minister of Labor and Small and Micro Enterprise Development, framed inclusive social dialogue as a non-negotiable foundation for sustained economic and social stability, outlining his administration’s core strategic priorities to build a more efficient, inclusive labor market for Trinidad and Tobago. Baptiste and his senior ministry team addressed every question and concern raised by the Haitian delegation, and formally confirmed the Trinidadian government’s commitment to supporting Haiti’s efforts to upgrade its labor sector institutions.
Joni Musabayana, the ILO’s Regional Representative, also participated in the talks, expressing solidarity with the Haitian people amid the country’s ongoing multifaceted crisis. He noted that Haiti holds the distinction of being one of the ILO’s founding member states, praised the cross-regional exchange between the two Caribbean nations as a model for collaborative problem-solving, and called for increased international attention and support for Caribbean countries grappling with uncommonly severe, unprecedented challenges.
By the conclusion of the meeting, both sides had mapped out clear, actionable areas for future bilateral cooperation. Key priority areas identified include capacity building for inclusive social dialogue, development of professional mediation frameworks, support for labor legislative reform, upgrades to labor inspection systems, improvement of labor market data collection and statistics, and broad institutional strengthening for Haiti’s labor and social affairs agencies.