By Brittany Bailer
In celebration of National Author’s Day, the Center for Women, Gender and Global Leadership at Howard University hosted a conversation and book signing with the Honorable Debra Thomas-Felix, a labor advocate and judge from the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago. Washington D.C. was the final stop of the American book launch tour. The tour began in New York City before traveling to Miami and ending at Howard University.
Thomas-Felix discussed her newest book, “Labour Law and Good Industrial Relations – Progressive Discipline and Maternity Protection in the Workplace.” It is her fourth book and second about labor. The book explores varied industrial relations trends, namely progressive discipline in the workplace, suspension from work, the right to be heard, the disciplinary process and the grievance procedure, and, most importantly, maternity protection at work. Thomas-Felix explored these issues through the lenses of violence, information and education, economic survival, politics, and culture and religion. She used these lenses to analyze how labor has been used and misused throughout the course of history.
The program featured dedications from various dignitaries and politicians including Anthony W.J. Phillips-Spencer, ambassador of Trinidad and Tobago to the United States; Paul Richards, senator in the Parliament of Trinidad and Tobago; Maria Roquebert Leon, ambassador and permanent representative of Panama to the Organization of American States; and Wilhelm Joseph, former executive director of Maryland Legal Aid.
These special guests gave review and commentary of the book and also celebrated the illustrious career of Thomas-Felix as a labor advocate and judge. Thomas-Felix expressed her sincere thanks to these guests and to the University, saying, “Authorship is another chapter in my commitment to the service of people. Service is the rent we pay for the privilege of living on this earth.”
One of the central tenants Thomas-Felix focused on in her book was the changing modality of work. The COVID-19 pandemic accelerated the rate at which society has shifted to hybrid and remote work. She emphasized that employers and policymakers alike will likely have to go back to the drawing board and reconsider many policies in light of this rapidly developing change.
Thomas-Felix has served for more than a decade as the President of the Industrial Court of Trinidad and Tobago, having previously served that court with distinction as a judge. Internationally, Thomas-Felix currently serves as a judge of the International Monetary Fund Administrative Tribunal. She served as second vice president and later president of the United Nations Appeals Tribunal. She is also a member of the Committee of Experts on the Application of Conventions and Recommendations of the International Labour Organization.
During the earlier part of her career, she served as the first president of the Family Court in Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, which was the first of its kind in any of the member states of the Organization of Eastern Caribbean States. Following her return to Trinidad and Tobago, she became a member of the Family Court Committee, which did the groundwork for the establishment of the Family Court.
