By Suraj Narine
Faced with a call by the Chief Labour Officer to end the ongoing strike by GGMC workers, Guyana Public Service Union (GPSU) representatives yesterday remained defiant, saying industrial action would continue as they remain focused on the push for wage increases.
In a letter, dated January 12th, Chief Labour Officer Charles Ogle advised acting General Secretary of the GPSU Deborah Murphy to bring the strike to an immediate end, while noting the union’s actions may be in breach of the extant Collective Labour Agreement with the Guyana Geology and Mines Commission (GGMC) and would therefore be illegal.
“In the circumstances, you are hereby requested to take the necessary steps to ensure that the strike is called off with immediate effect thereby paving the way for a return of normalcy in negotiations, the management of the commission and the union management relations,” Ogle wrote.
However, GPSU Senior Industrial Relations Officer Dennis English yesterday said the union would remain focused and workers would continue to strike today.
He regarded Ogle’s suggestion that the strike action may be illegal as “an opinion” and said the union is not subject to the ministry, which he called a conciliatory body.
Ogle, in his letter, pointed out that the Collective Labour Agreement provides, among other things, that after a joint meeting/ conference, an unresolved dispute may be referred to conciliation for possible resolution and after this fails, provision is made for a referral to arbitration.
Ogle said as far as he is aware, his ministry does not have in its possession any such application, which for all intents and purposes, must preface any contemplated industrial action. Clause 12 of the Collective Labour Agree-ment, the letter stated, prohibits withdrawal of labour during the negotiations process, which was disregarded by the union.
Workers resumed striking last week Tuesday due to the inability of the union and the GGMC management to settle increases in wages and salaries dating back to 2013 by the end of last year.
The workers and representatives of the GPSU moved their picketing exercise from in front of the Natural Resources Ministry to outside of the Office of the President after lunch yesterday.
Industrial Relations Officer Jermaine Hermanstyne told Stabroek News that the reason for the move was because the acting Commissioner of the GGMC Rickford Vieira has made it clear that settlement of the dispute it is out of the GGMC’s hand and it is up to the Minister of Natural Resources and the Environment Robert Persaud.
When contacted last night, Persaud said since the Ministry of Labour has issued a statement, he would not offer any comment.
“…Since the minister’s pact has not been signed, we recognised that we may have to take it to the Office of the President if the need arise… and that is precisely what we have done,” Hermanstyne explained.
Hermanstyne related that what is being played out is political and the union is not interested in it. Its main concern, he said, is looking after the workers.
Addressing Ogle’s letter, Hermanstyne said, “…The Ministry of Labour is a ministry that deals with conciliation… so the letter that Mr. Ogle has sent is an opinion and should be treated as such… striking is a legal action that is in the constitution, it is a constitutional right for persons to withdraw their labour… we are acting within our mandate and within the rims of the law….”
