Regional union body seeks urgent talks
By Kisean Joseph kisean.joseph@antiguaobserver.com UNI Global Union has called for urgent talks with CIBC Caribbean and Butterfield Bank over their merger, warning of risks to banking workers regionally. Butterfield announced its agreement to acquire CIBC’s majority stake in CIBC Caribbean on 28th May, in a deal valued at approximately US$1.8 billion, with completion expected in […]
Black News 
By Kisean Joseph
kisean.joseph@antiguaobserver.com
UNI Global Union has called for urgent talks with CIBC Caribbean and Butterfield Bank over their merger, warning of risks to banking workers regionally.
Butterfield announced its agreement to acquire CIBC’s majority stake in CIBC Caribbean on 28th May, in a deal valued at approximately US$1.8 billion, with completion expected in the first half of 2027.
Speaking during a four-country Caribbean tour that concluded in Antigua, UNI Americas Regional Secretary Marcio Monzane said the global union body wants to meet both banks before the transaction advances further. He said early talks could help prevent labour disputes once the deal proceeds.
Monzane said the best way to protect workers is for the banks to engage directly with their unions. “The best way to protect the workers is to bring the unions to a meeting and talk to the unions, and explain to the union what is the consequence of this merger or this acquisition,” Monzane said. “Especially to listen from the unions what is the concern of the workers.”
He further said that the union body wants both banks at the table immediately.
“We call Butterfield and CIBC to set an urgent meeting,” Monzane said. “Urgent meeting is important, and start to talk in this preliminary moment of the transaction that they are doing, because that can anticipate a lot of possible problems in the future.”
Trevor Johnson, Regional Vice President of UNI Americas and a former general secretary of the Banking Insurance and General Workers Union in Trinidad and Tobago, said the merger’s cross-border reach makes it particularly significant for the region’s unions.
“These are not just banks in one country; these are basically regional, multinational banks,” Johnson said. “When they make a decision like this, it’s like a seismic shift; it’s like an earthquake because it impacts workers in not just Trinidad and Tobago or Barbados, but in Jamaica, across the region.”
He said differences in national labour laws across the Caribbean complicate the unions’ response, since worker protections vary from country to country even where banks operate regionally.
Monzane said UNI Global Union, which represents finance sector unions worldwide, is prepared to support its Caribbean affiliates throughout the process.
