University of Guyana (UG) workers will begin a “full-blown” three-day strike on Monday after negotiations between their unions and the university administration reach another impasse due to a demand by Vice-Chancellor Jacob Opadeyi that they end continuing industrial action during talks.
The University of Guyana Senior Staff Association (UGSSA) and the University of Guyana Workers’ Union (UGWU), which represent academic and non-academic staff, respectively, took the decision yesterday, after Opadeyi withdrew a proposed wage increase on Thursday and declared that there would be no negotiations under duress.
Students are also expected to be a part of the full strike, which is an escalation of the sit-in that began on January 26, 2015, when the new semester was scheduled to commence.
Word of the cancellation of negotiations spread following a letter from Opadeyi to the presidents of the unions, UGSSA’s Dr Mellissa Ifill and UGWU’s Bruce Haynes. In the letter, Opadeyi expressed “dismay” at the staff’s continuing industrial action despite ongoing negotiations.
He also rescinded the council’s offer of a 5% raise in 2015 and said negotiations will only continue when all staff members have returned to their posts. “We wish to restate our position very clearly: we will not be negotiating while Union members or group[s] of workers are off the job or [sitting-in] without doing work,” Opadeyi wrote. He continued, “For the negotiation to continue all workers must be back to work and classes are to be conducted as scheduled. We urge the workers of the university to resume duty without delay as to pave the way for a genuine negotiation aimed to address their concerns.”
However, the unions are insisting that they will not give in and workers will not resume their duties until their requested 60% wage increase is granted.
Both staffers and students alike turned out to a meeting in the George Walcott Lecture Theatre at the Turkeyen Campus yesterday to discuss the impasse and a way forward.
During the meeting, it was proposed by several members that President Donald Ramotar needs to be involved in the UG situation. The unions also indicated an interest in third-party conciliation, along with enhanced communication with the media to highlight their ongoing plight.
Eric Phillips, UG lecturer, opined that Opadeyi is not interested in negotiations and he urged the unions to approach the president instead. Phillips said, “The only person who can give an increase is the president… write a letter to the president, send a delegation to meet the president.” He added, “This is a political season; he will react. We need to be more strategic. The Vice-Chancellor does not want to negotiate. So why keep engaging him?”
Phillips also opined that the university will be “stuck in limbo” because the money for an increase could only come from a budget that has been approved by the National Assembly. Parliament is currently prorogued and the elections have been slated for May 11th this year. “So, we need to address the source of the problem and ignore the Vice Chancellor,” he urged.
Phillips further noted that engaging the Ministry of Labour would also be a “lengthy process.” He questioned: “Do you want to be here for three months?”
Ifill indicated that persons are making “soft inquiries” to seek an audience with the president. These approaches are still being made, she said.
She also said the unions are planning to write a letter to the president but she warned those in attendance not to get their hopes up. She explained that previous efforts with high-ranking officials, including Minister of Education Priya Manickchand, had been disappointments despite their positive indications.
Some in attendance also opined that the politicians had been quiet on the issue for years and continue to be silent even as tensions reach a climax.
Cooperation
The ongoing strife between the administration and the unions has seen improved cooperation between the staff and students and this budding relationship is planned to be used to a strategic advantage.
During yesterday’s meeting, students expressed their willingness to support any actions undertaken by the unions and reiterated that they were the ones who were ultimately being affected.
According to Ifill, the unions and administration were invited to a meeting by the students in order to reach an agreement.
Ifill said the students were very concerned but she noted that “students and administrations come and go.” Instead, she said, the academic and non-academic staff are the ones to remain with the university for decades and therefore they had the burden of the fight on them.
She insisted that the current discord was not just to benefit those presently at the university but those who will be a part of it in the future.
“This is more than just about the students here and now; this is about the future of tertiary education in Guyana, what type of education, what quality of education this nation deserves, and how willing are we–the stakeholders who more likely than not remain the longest, fight the longest…—how willing are we to fight for that quality education,” Ifill emphasised.
Another staff member noted that despite the circumstances, there has been almost full cooperation between the unions and the student population. “We have been cooperating despite the adversity, despite the squalor in which we have to function,” he said.
However, this cooperation has been slightly stymied by staff members who continued to work despite the industrial action being undertaken by the unions. These persons were called on to give their full support to the cause and remain courageous in the face of threats and harassment.
According to Ifill, the staff members have been threatened with a salary cut for their industrial action. She said that there are a few persons still teaching but, overall, the unions had “effectively shut down the university.”
One executive member of the unions said though there are about 600 members in the unions, he is yet to see even 100 of them.
He also opined that the staff should not resume their duties because their refusal to work was their main bargaining chip.
Students were also urged to take legal action against the university for its inability to provide them with an education despite having them paid for one.
‘VC eyes pass we!’
Following yesterday’s meeting, the staff and students also staged an impromptu protest on the tarmac of the Education Lecture Theatre (ELT).
At the time, Opadeyi had been holding a meeting with the heads of departments and the deans of the university. Council members had also been present at the meeting.
The staff members and the supportive students trooped quickly out of the George Walcott Lecture Theatre and made their way to the ELT. As they progressed, they began chanting the words, “5% can’t work!” and “No money, no work!”
Their chants grew in volume when they arrived at the ELT tarmac to take up their positions until Opadeyi emerged.
Led by executive member of the UGSSA Sherwood Lowe, the crowd of more than 100 yelled loudly, “VC eyes pass we!”
After about 20 minutes of protest, union members began trickling out of the ELT and some stood to the side to watch with interest what would happen. Opadeyi was one of the last persons to leave the ELT and as he appeared, the chants grew louder and louder.
Unfortunately for him, his car had been parked some ways away and he was forced to walk there as protesters hurled words at him. “Opadeyi sell out UG!” they yelled as they followed behind him.
In turn, Opadeyi remained silent and briskly walked to his vehicle, jumped a drain, and entered it with his driver. All the while the chants continued and as he made his way deeper into the university, several of the protesters headed in that direction on foot.
According to former UGSSA president Dr Patsy Francis, Opadeyi had been very disrespectful to the unions in the past weeks. She said Opadeyi had been “cussing out” and “bad talking” the unions in public, while simultaneously bullying them. She added that this tactic has caused a negative perception of the UG staff by members of the public.
Francis further said the unions had always been pushing for better conditions for both the staff and the students and instead of being thanked by the administration they were being labelled lazy.
She urged all interested stakeholders to remain resolute and warned others of possible backlash which might come because of their determination.
In response, Ifill said the unions are working on putting things in place to deal with any repercussions from the administration that might materialise.
On Monday, strike action will commence from 8 AM at the university’s northern gates, Ifill said. Monday’s strike action will mark two weeks since the commencement of industrial action by UG staff.
The decision for industrial action was taken after wage negotiations between the administration and the unions, which date back to 2012, collapsed. The unions had threatened a sit-in if their demands, which included a 60% salary increase, were not positively met. The collapse in negotiations also saw protest action by students and staff which led to the shutdown of the university last week, while a call by Opadeyi for a return to normalcy in order to address the problems on campus was ignored.
