Portia Simpson Miller honoured with Labour Ministry building naming in Kingston

The Ministry of Labour and Social Security’s head office at 1F North Street in Kingston has been formally named the Portia Simpson Miller Building, in recognition of the former prime minister’s contribution to labour, social protection and national leadership.

The ceremony formed part of Workers Week 2026 and the Government’s Jamaica Legacy Programme, which is intended to preserve the record of Jamaicans who helped shape national life. It was the second of two dedication and naming ceremonies held that day.

Prime Minister Dr. Andrew Holness, Opposition Leader Mark Golding, Labour and Social Security Minister Pearnel Charles Jr., Culture, Gender, Entertainment and Sport Minister Olivia “Babsy” Grange, State Minister Donovan Williams, trade union representatives, ministry officials and members of Simpson Miller’s family were among those taking part.

Speakers highlighted Simpson Miller’s long association with the labour portfolio, noting that she served between 1989 and 2000 in ministries covering labour, welfare, social security and sport. They also pointed to her advocacy for Jamaican workers, women, pensioners, overseas farm workers and vulnerable communities.

Golding recalled that Simpson Miller became Jamaica’s first female prime minister and the first woman to lead the People’s National Party. He also said her work helped strengthen the overseas liaison arrangements for Jamaican workers abroad and praised her role in steering Jamaica through an IMF-backed economic programme while she was prime minister from 2012 to 2016.

Grange and Charles said the building tribute was fitting because much of Simpson Miller’s public service was tied to worker protection, social security and access to opportunity. They cited her support for the overseas recruitment centre for farm workers, improvements to social protection, and the establishment of a labour relations chair at the University of the West Indies.

Holness said the naming should remind public servants that social security is not charity but a duty and, in many cases, a right. He also said the western children’s hospital associated with Simpson Miller’s advocacy in China should be named in her honour, and noted that a bust and documentary are being prepared.

Alysia Magnus, representing Simpson Miller’s family, said the former prime minister would have been present if she could. She described her aunt as a deeply present family figure whose public concern for ordinary Jamaicans reflected the person she was at home.