Jamale Pringle declared that the United Progressive Party is prepared to govern and return “power to the working class,” calling for political freedom and economic justice during a rousing Labour Day address.
Opposition Leader Jamale Pringle rallied support for workers across Antigua and Barbuda on Monday, saying it was time to “rise up” against poor wages, decaying infrastructure, and rising economic hardship.
Speaking at the Antigua and Barbuda Workers’ Union (ABWU) rally, Pringle said the Labour Day holiday was not just a commemoration of past struggles, but a call to action.
“When two-parent households can’t provide for their children, when pensioners are choosing between food and medicine, when young people are disappearing—then it is time to rise,” he told supporters.
He warned that workers living on $9 an hour cannot survive, pledging that a UPP government would work alongside the ABWU to deliver a living wage and safeguard severance benefits.
He also highlighted a decade-long severance dispute involving former Curtain Bluff hotel workers, which he said symbolised a wider disregard for workers’ rights.
Pringle called for seasonal protections for tourism and service workers, and promised that nurses, teachers and police—who he said had seen record levels of industrial unrest—would be prioritised under UPP leadership.
“There is no doubt that the Antigua and Barbuda Workers’ Union has worked for you,” he said.
“It’s time to support the UPP and ABWU—together, we will march for services and savings, for freedom and for the future.”
He ended his address with a pledge: “Better days are coming… the UPP stands ready to govern.”
