Notice of the company’s intention to put the machinery in motion to de-recognize the union came in a letter signed by General Manager Sergei Kostyuk and delivered to union President Charles Sampson on Wednesday, shortly before the two sides were due to commence a meeting with Chief Labour Officer Yoganand Persaud to continue negotiations towards a hoped-for end to the strike action taken by the workers last Sunday to back their demand for a wage increase.
The company’s seemingly sudden decision to de-recognize the union brought a halt to the talks and heightened concerns about the fate of the striking workers in the two already depressed mining communities.
When Stabroek Business contacted the Chief Labour Officer he confirmed that he had seen a copy of the letter and conceded that it had taken him “by surprise.” He told this newspaper that up until the appearance of the letter he had been under the impression that “we were meeting to address the strike situation.” The move by BCGI effectively brought the talks with the Ministry of Labour to a shuddering halt though Persaud declined to comment on the possible implications of the development for the immediate future of the industrial relations status quo at BCGI.
Stabroek Business has seen a copy of the notice of de-recognition issued by the company. It charges the union had “committed fundamental breaches” of Article (40) of the Collective Labour Agreement by thrice “directing industrial action against the company” on March 20th, May 22nd and November 22nd of this year “causing the company to suffer severe loss and damage.” The letter adds that the company “regards these breaches as a serious repudiation of CLA…and regards the CLA as at an end.” BCGI also asserts that it has lost confidence in the union adding that “similar sentiments” had been expressed by a number of workers.
Late on Wednesday, even as this newspaper was speaking with Sampson and other senior union officials word arrived in Georgetown that the company was seeking to have the striking workers return to work though the union officials were insisting that the strike remained in force. Reached for comment, the company’s Industrial Relations Consultant, retired Chief Labour Officer Mohamed Akeel told Stabroek News that the letter signed by Kostyuk had been prepared by the company’s legal adviser. Akeel declined to comment further on the recent development.
Meanwhile, Sampson, who also declined to offer an immediate comment on the letter, told Stabroek Business that he believed that the action by the company was indicative of a continual decline in the industrial relations climate at BCGI and that this was a function of much more than the current industrial action that had been taken by the workers. He said that over time the realization of a convivial industrial relations climate at the predominantly Russian-owned BCGI had been undermined by “an overwhelming disrespect for the leadership of the union among the expatriate management” of the company. Acting General Secretary of the union Leslie Gonsalves described the company General Manager as difficult to communicate with.”
Sampson said that the ‘communication problems” which the union had experienced with the BCGI management arose both out of “the attitude of the predominantly Russian management” of the company and a serious language barrier which necessitated the use of an interpreter at meetings between the two sides. He said that the union would be studying the contents of the letter carefully before deciding on its next move.
Meanwhile, Sampson is insisting that there may well have been no need for industrial action in the first place had the BCGI management agreed to the implementation of “its own wage increase proposal.” He said that while the Union had originally sought a 40 per cent wage increase it had subsequently agreed to one of three wage increase proposals tabled by the company at a November 12th meeting. “At that meeting the company placed three options on the table and the one we accepted had to do with the company paying a 10 per cent wage increase retroactive to the beginning of this year. That option included a level of retrenchment commensurate with the production volume decrease this year. What this meant in effect was that the wage increase retrenchment could affect around 14 per cent of the work force or 75 employees.
Sampson said that immediately upon receiving the union’s acceptance of that option BCGI, whose shares are divided between the Russian bauxite giant Rusal (90%) and the Government of Guyana (10%), began to prevaricate. “Frankly, I do not believe that they expected us to accept that option. We had gone to the workers and what we found was that some of them were insisting that we accept the option. Many of them actually wanted to quit the company,” Sampson said.
Industrial sources with whom this newspaper spoke expressed surprise that the union appeared to accept significant job losses as a trade-off for a wage increase well below that which it was seeking in the first place.
Meanwhile, the GB&GWU President told Stabroek Business that he believed that government could also have contributed to the avoidance of the strike action for increased wages had they acceded to a request by the union for the reinstatement of a long-standing condition under which workers in the bauxite industry received tax free payments on overtime worked in excess of 40 hours. “We have written to the Office of the President on this matter but we are yet to secure a response. What needs to be understood is that we are seeking to enhance the liquidity of employees so that spending levels in their already depressed communities could increase. If we have that tax free arrangement restored for eighteen months, for example, we would not seek an increase for that period.”
The strike which comes in the midst of a crisis in the bauxite industry resulting from a significantly reduced global demand for bauxite resulted in action by the company to divert a ship en route to Guyana to receive a consignment of the product.
Yesterday, Stabroek Business learnt of a possible private sector initiative to mediate in the dispute. A private sector source told this newspaper that the objectives of the mediation were to restore the status quo both in terms of the union’s position at BCGI as well as in the matter as an end to the current industrial dispute. ‘The primary concern of the private sector is with saving jobs at what is a difficult time for both the bauxite industry and for the workers in the sector, their families and their communities,” the source said.
