In Jamaica, however, this particular proposal provoked strong objections from the business sector, and the merger control clauses were removed from the draft law. Trade Unions . The Private Sector Organization of Jamaica and the Bar Association argued that the blanket exemption of trade unions in the draft law revealed a failure to recognize the economic power unions exercise in the workplace. Indeed, collective bargaining itself is a kind of cartelization of workers and definitely does affect competition in some industries. However, the basic purpose of a trade union is collective bargaining over wages and working conditions, and subjecting unions to the competition legislation would defeat the very purpose of unionization.
Trade unions enjoy broad immunity from competition regulations in almost all countries.
The government decided to grant Jamaica's unions the same immunity. Government policymakers and business leaders in countries weighing changes in their competition policy would do well to consider Jamaica's experience. One interesting question is why the Jamaican government adopted a more vigorous competition policy in the first place. For decades, the state had fixed prices, fostered monopolies, limited entry to various industries, and encouraged restrictive business practices. The IMF and World Bank had not exerted any great pressure for reform, and the People's National Party had offered no promises to boost competition during its successful electoral campaign.