Colonial legacies and the labour market in the English-speaking Caribbean

About the project

The proposed research explores how institutions, laws (written/unwritten) and general structures of governance in the colonial period in the English-speaking Caribbean can still shape present day institutions like the labour market.

The main hypothesis is that colonial governance would have impacted on the structure of the economy, relationships between different groups, and aspirations of people; which all continue to impact on the dynamics of the present day labour market. The project combines historical and economic analysis to link the past to the present through an historical exploration of the labour market (1800-1960), post-independence analysis (1960-present), and a forward-looking perspective on aspirations of young Caribbean people.

Focus will be on Barbados, Guyana, Jamaica and Trinidad and Tobago. Current academic and policy discourse have shone a light on the decolonisation agenda. This project will inform these debates by providing evidence on how long-standing colonial institutions may still influence present day society.

This research/project is supported/funded by the British Academy’s Knowledge Frontiers: International Interdisciplinary Research Programme.

The British Academy’s project page is available hereLink opens in a new window.

Project duration: 2025 - 2027

Project Team

Dr Jamelia HarrisLink opens in a new window (Principal Investigator, IER Warwick) is an economist with expertise in development and labour economics. She has conducted both academic and policy-driven research in Africa, the Caribbean and UK. Her current research focuses on labour markets, but she has also researched government finances, and the effects of climate change on communities. She has designed surveys and conducted quantitative and qualitative analysis of primary and secondary data.

Dr. Dexnell PetersLink opens in a new window (Co-Investigator, UWI Jamaica) is a historian who specialises in the Caribbean and the Atlantic World during the eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries. His current research on the rise of a Greater Southern Caribbean sub-region focuses on three of the four territories that will be examined in this proposed project, Barbados, Guyana and Trinidad. He also has experience conducting work related to the legacies of colonialism in the Caribbean.

Professor Roger HosseinLink opens in a new window is an economist and senior faculty at the University of West Indies (Trinidad and Tobago). He specialises in international trade and labour research.

Dr Graham KingLink opens in a new window is an engineer and senior faculty at the University of West Indies (Trinidad and Tobago). He is currently the Director of the St. Augustine Centre for Innovation and Entrepreneurship, and custodian of the new Centre for Work Force Research and Development.

Stefanie PooleLink opens in a new window is a project support officer at IER (Warwick). She will provide administrative and clerical support to the project.

Research output