in the workplace was yesterday cancelled after a family emergency arose for Development and Opportunity Minister Terry Lister.

People arriving for the meeting, scheduled for 1 p.m. at the Anglican Cathedral hall in Hamilton, were told it was off.

A Government spokesman later said Mr. Lister had to leave the Island at short notice because one of his children was taken ill overseas.

The cancelled meeting -- one of a series -- is part of a drive by Mr. Lister to canvass public opinion on the proposed changes to Commission for Unity and Racial Equality (CURE) regulations.

The CURE regulations -- currently stalled after Senate voted last month to block them -- were aimed at getting accurate statistics on the racial breakdown in the workplace.

They required firms with ten or more employees to register with CURE and provide an annual breakdown on race, employment level and income of the workforce.

Companies would also have had to provide information on the racial breakdown of job applicants and a list of people who quit, by race and giving a reason.

Employees would have been asked to fill in forms giving their ethnic origin, job, pay and perks, while job applicants would be required to give race and post applied for.

Firms failing to register or provide requested information would be liable for fines of between $1000 and $5000.

Business chiefs said they supported equal opportunity but the CURE regulations meant too much red tape and complained of insufficient consultation.

GOVERNMENT GVT