Labour Minister Manzoor Nadir is refuting recent statements made by Opposition Leader Robert Corbin and says that his Ministry has been doing all in its power to intercede in the dispute between the Guyana Bauxite and General Workers Union (GB&GWU) and RUSAL’s Bauxite Company of Guyana Inc.
Nadir, in a statement yesterday sent through GINA, responded to Corbin’s assertions that the Ministry was not doing enough to carry out its constitutional duty to intervene in the dispute. Corbin had made these statements last week Thursday during the party’s weekly press conference. On that occasion, Corbin said he had written to the Minister on the matter. However, Nadir said he is yet to receive the letter that the PNCR Leader said he had sent to him.
The Labour Minister said that the department had done all in its power to address the situation. “Looking at an interview in the electronic media, the Leader of the Opposition makes mention of the possible failings of the ministry in terms of the RUSAL/Guyana Bauxite & General Workers Union (GB&GWU) dispute. I must say that the ministry has been involved and has taken the matter to its farthest point”, Nadir said. “Our job at the ministry is to ensure the labour laws are observed and enforced within the laws and intervene on behalf of workers. We have been doing that and quite successfully too”, the Minister is quoted as saying.
However, according to the Minister, there is currently a stalemate as it stands and that not much is left to be done to unite the parties expect continually urging them to meet.
Nadir said that no company can unilaterally decide to derecognize a union since this falls under the purview of the Trade Union Recognition and Certification Board. Over 100 members of the union had applied to the Board, requesting that the union be derecognized, the Minister said. He stressed, though, that once a union has been certified as the bargaining unit, the employers must deal with the union.
Meanwhile, Nadir accused the union of levelling spurious accusations against him including that of racism. The Ethnic Relations Commissions (ERC) has been handling the accusation levelled against the Minister.
The impasse between the union and the bauxite company began in November when the workers went on strike for increased pay closing down the Aroaima and Kwakwani sites.
The company then moved to terminate the CLA and indicated its intention to have the union derecognized. Since then, the company has resumed its operations. Fifty workers -including the union’s leaders were dismissed.
