JMDA presses IDT for ruling as doctors’ deadline looms

The Jamaica Medical Doctors Association (JMDA) is again calling on the Industrial Disputes Tribunal (IDT) to deliver its long-awaited ruling in the dispute over overtime payments, as the association maintains that further delay amounts to a denial of justice.

The call follows a statement from the IDT on Wednesday acknowledging concerns about delays in handing down awards and saying it remains committed to delivering “reasoned and fair rulings”.

In response, JMDA President Dr Jubilee Brown-Service said the association wants the tribunal to act without further delay.

The JMDA said the IDT itself recognised in its statement that “justice delayed is justice denied” and is therefore calling on the tribunal to “stop denying justice to our doctors by handing down its award without further delay”.

Brown-Service is also asking whether the IDT can provide a timeline for when the award will be delivered and address suggestions that there may have been interference in what should be an objective and independent process.

The issue centres on a dispute between the JMDA and the Government over Emergency Duty Allowance and compensation for extra hours worked by doctors.

The association has been pressing for an award of $31 billion in retroactive overtime payments, while the Government's calculation is $23 billion.

The JMDA says its case before the IDT was completed on April 1, 2026, after more than 170 pieces of evidence were presented. The doctors have been awaiting a ruling since then.

At a press conference on Tuesday, Brown-Service said doctors had worked for 42 months “in some of the most adverse conditions”, including resource-deficient facilities, poor accommodation and high doctor-patient ratios.

“We’ve worked, we deserve to be paid, we deserve a ruling. Our patience has been exhausted,” she said.

The IDT, however, said in a statement on Wednesday that while it recognises the importance of timely rulings, complex cases sometimes require extensive reviews of evidence and legal authorities.

“Justice must also be careful,” the tribunal said, while acknowledging that unusual delays could erode public confidence in its work. It pointed to Section 12(1) of the Labour Relations and Industrial Disputes Act, which provides for an award within 21 days of a dispute being referred, or “as soon as may be practicable” where that is not possible.

The tribunal said delivering awards with reasonable promptness is a “core judicial function” and that, where delays are excessive, it has a duty to apologise and urge the parties and the public to exercise patience.

It also assured that it would continue working to improve the timeliness of its awards while maintaining its commitment to “just and fair settlements”.

But the JMDA says patience is running out.

General Secretary Dr Fabian Blake previously said the delay was unacceptable and raised questions about “accountability, transparency and timely administration of justice in industrial disputes”.

Trade unionist Lambert Brown, who represents the doctors, has also alleged that there were attempts to influence the three-member tribunal panel because of concerns about the financial implications of a ruling against the Government. Those claims have been presented as allegations and have not been established by the IDT.

Meanwhile, the JMDA has warned that normality in the public health system cannot be guaranteed if the ruling is not delivered by Friday.

The Ministry of Health and Wellness has said it is also awaiting the IDT's decision and has urged all parties to remain patient, citing the complexity of the matters before the tribunal. The ministry said regional health authorities are putting measures in place to limit any possible impact on patients if doctors withdraw their services.

The JMDA said it is grateful for the support of the Association of Government Medical Consultants and the Jamaica Confederation of Trade Unions, describing the united position as important not only to the current dispute but to the future handling of industrial disputes.

“This is not a demand for special treatment; it is a demand for the same that has been given to every other worker of Jamaica,” Blake said previously. “It is a demand for fairness, accountability and respect for the rights of Jamaicans, Jamaican workers and the rights of medical doctors.”

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