President of the Guyana Public Service Union (GPSU) Patrick Yarde has told the Stabroek Business said that the union is ready to engage government in talks over wages and salaries in the Public Service. “We’re ready. In fact, I can tell you that we will now be making active enquiries of the government about its preparedness to start the talks,” Yarde said. “This goes beyond wages and salaries. It is about a return to collective bargaining. It is a historic moment for the entire labour movement in our country.”
And the veteran trade union leader who, up until now, had declined to comment on the contents of the recently released Report of the Commission of Enquiry into the Public Service told this newspaper that the report “may well assist the process of righting historic wrongs,” that had affected public servants for many years though he declined to elaborate on the grounds that the union still had not completed studying the document. “There will be time for a more expansive comment on the report after we have studied it properly,” he said.
During his telephone conversation with this newspaper, Yarde said that the union had been busying itself with preparations for the negotiations with government. “That has been our first order of business for some time now and I can tell you that we intend to ensure that every public servant is part of that process. These negotiations are about our members and their constant involvement is important to us.”
And according to the union president, the GPSU was anticipating that the negotiations with government would take place on a level playing field. “Given all that has been said previously by the present political administration we believe we are entitled to expect a negotiating environment that is qualitatively different to those that had obtained in the past,” Yarde added.
Asked whether there had as yet been any signal from government regarding a likely date for the commencement of negotiations Yarde responded in the negative but said he did not believe that “public servants could be reasonably be expected to wait any longer. I can think of nothing that is not now in place to have the talks begin. As I said earlier we will certainly be making earnest enquiries.”
On Wednesday, the union issued a short statement alluding to remarks attributed to President David Granger about “lazy public servants” and Yarde said in response to a question from this newspaper that “it is not the union’s expectation that, at this stage, anything will be said on either side that might appear to be intended to prejudice the negotiations. What concerned myself and the union’s executive council was the seeming prominence given to the comment attributed to the President during the handing over of the Report of the COI when the issue did not appear to be one of concern during the actual hearings.”
Yarde said that while he had no wish to make it appear as though the union was concerned only about “wages and salaries issues” the reality was that where wages and salaries were concerned public servants had been denied their entitlement for far too long and could hardly be blamed for placing that on the top of their list of priorities.
Throughout the interview Yarde continually declined to comment directly on issues raised in the section of the COI report regarding the “compensation system of the Guyana public service.” He said the union had been “working hard on an approach to the negotiations that will properly position us to get the very best that we can for public servants. We have waited long and we are entirely up to the challenge.”
Asked whether the union was anticipating “tough” negotiations, Yarde said that the GPSU was entering the negotiations with an open mind. “What I can tell you,” he said, “is that we are mindful of the fact that we are entering into negotiations with a government that has already made clear and repeatedly its interest in the welfare of public servants and the public service. There is an expectation and a reasonable one, I believe, that those same sentiments will be reflected in the government’s negotiating posture.”
Asked just how much of a challenge the negotiations will be for the union given the likely high expectations of its members, Yarde said that what the union was striving for was to be “on the same page” with its members as far as the negotiations were concerned. “For me and for the union’s executive we are in a historic moment. What constantly occurs to us are the wrongs that must be righted and frankly we will be painting with a broad brush during the negotiations. We do not intend to leave anything for another day.”
Asked whether there were other issues outside of wages and salaries that were of particular interest to the union, Yarde said that while “I emphasize again that we have not yet studied the COI Report,” there are other issues including training, contract employment and the general well-being of public servants and the public service on which the union was likely to have strong views. “On the whole the concern of the union will be with the extent to which the report and its recommendations can result in the creation of a better public service that is not only more efficient and effective but one that is also free of the dead hand of political interference and a public service in which workers are properly compensated for the work that they do.”
