High Court Judge Nareshwar Harnanan has dismissed an application of the Guyana Civil Servants and General Workers Union (GCS&GWU), which had made several applications to the Trade Union Recognition and Certification Board (the Board) to be treated as the recognized union for workers of the Guyana Geology and Mines Commission (GGMC).
The Chamber of Attorney General Anil Nandlall SC confirmed the ruling on Thursday.
In a release, Nandlall’s office said GCS&GWU (the Applicant) brought the action against Chairman of the Board Dr Nanda Gopaul, the Attorney General and the Guyana Public Service Union (GPSU).
GCS&GWU, a union duly registered under the Trade Union Recognition Act, made several applications to the Board to be treated as the recognized union for tradesmen as well as administrative, professional, technical, and clerical workers at the GGMC.
Providing particulars of the AG’s Chambers said the last application, dated May 31 of last year, was considered by the Board and a poll was conducted five months after, in accordance with section 21 of the Act.
That poll was to decide which union would represent the workers.
According to the AG’s Chambers, out of a voters’ list (bargaining unit) of 498 persons there were only 260 votes cast—GCS&GWU obtained 158 votes and GPSU, “who was at all material times the majority union certified to represent the employees of GGMC, secured 102 votes.”
The release said that the Board unanimously agreed that based on the results, the challenging union, GCS&GWU, with its 158 votes obtained 31.73% support amongst the workers in the bargaining unit of 498 employees.
The Board, the AG’s release said decided that GCS&GWU by obtaining 31.73% support amongst the workers in the bargaining unit failed to satisfy the stipulated threshold of 40% amongst the workers in the unit as stipulated by the Act, that is to say, GCS&GWU, the challenging union, did not obtain 40% of the 498 employees in the bargaining unit to cancel the certificate of recognition of GPSU.
GCS&GWU would then move to the courts to challenge the Board’s interpretation of section 21 of the Act, seeking, among other things, a declaration that the GPSU, having decisively lost the poll, could not properly continue to be the certified union for the employees as contemplated by section 21 of the Act
GCS&GWU also sought an order requiring the Board to decertify the GPSU and to certify it in its instead, as the union representing the employees.
The AG’s Chambers said the respondents to the application argued that the Act needed be read as a whole and that it was clear that the legislators provided for various situations, among them that the proviso in Section 21 applies to the entire section 21 as it qualifies the section to provide a procedure for when there is already a certified union.
It added that the respondents argued that Section 21(2) could never have been intended to apply to a union that has already been certified as is the case with GPSU and that if one is to use the Applicant’s contention that the proviso does not apply to section 21(2) then this will lead to an absurdity.
According to the Ag’s Chambers, Justice Harnanan in upholding the submissions of the respondents denied the declarations and orders sought by the GCS&GWU and ruled among other things that the Board had not act in excess of its jurisdiction; nor did it exercise its discretion in an “unreasonable, irregular or improper,” manner.
It said the judge also ruled that the proviso applies to the entire of Section 21 and that any contrary interpretation will lead to an “absurdity,” and further that there was no error in law on the part of the Board.
The Application made by GCS&GWU was therefore dismissed with costs in the sum of $250,000 to the Board and the Attorney General and $200,000 to GPSU, the AG’s Chambers added.
The GCS&GWU was represented by attorney Mayo Robertson, the Board by the AG’s Chambers and GPSU by attorney Mandisa Breedy.
