Minister of Labour, Small and Micro Enterprise Development, Leroy Baptiste, says the Government’s National Recruitment Drive could inject over $253 million annually into the NIS Fund, potentially rescuing it from collapse.
Speaking in the Senate debate on the 2026 fiscal package, Minister Baptiste criticised the former administration for presiding over the loss of more than 60,000 jobs in the past decade, contributing to what he described as a “major deficit” in NIS contributions.
He said the Government’s National Recruitment Drive to fill some 20,000 vacancies would not only restore employment lost from failed programmes, but also stabilise the Fund.
“If one was to assume on average at the filling of those vacancies that you have net increasing salary of about $6,500 a month per person. If you have that now being the mean or median salary, you have total direct household income based on 20,000 being 20,000 by $78,000 annually we’re talking about an injection of $1.56 billion. For the NIS, it could mean contribution to the extent of over $253 million annually.”
The Minister cited the Central Statistical Office (CSO) data to support his claims, pointing to the economic damage caused by the previous administration.
“Over 64,900 jobs lost, and therefore the corresponding drop in contribution to the NIS, based on the last ten years of the PNM existence. So you have a major deficit of contribution to the NIS Fund. And we have found ourselves here, having to treat with that, with a level of urgency, lest we face the collapse of NIS and the NIB.”
Minister Baptiste also stressed the broader economic impact of the Recruitment Drive, estimating that it could inject over $3 billion into the national economy through direct and indirect job creation.
“You’re talking about the possibility of what, 20,000 jobs, indirectly creating 30,000 jobs, and then you have a total of 50,000 jobs. You’re talking about the possibility of adding the next $1.8 billion again in circulation in this economy, and I saying this because I want the business community to know they have to support this budget, and this initiative, because it seeks to inject into this economy as much as over $3 billion by the National Recruitment Drive.”
Minister Baptiste, a former Labour leader, also condemned the previous administration’s handling of industrial relations, noting that it’s only now, through the Recruitment Drive, that the Government is fulfilling its obligations to promote decent work.
“Madam President, prior to my installation as the Minister of Labour, Small and Micro Enterprise Development, the industrial relations climate in Trinidad and Tobago could be described in only one word. That word is unhealthy.”
Minister Baptiste said that for the past nine years, the former Government failed to recognise the importance of tripartite structures that were necessary to steer this country in the direction of industrial peace and harmony.
