One week ago, my team over at Tamùkke Feminists held a Labour Laws and Policies workshop for new and mid-career professionals. Facilitated by Anansa Swain and Kevin Morgan, the workshop touched on several topics such as overtime, insurance, gender, health and safety etc. Given the importance of the information that was shared, I wanted to highlight some of the things that came out in the workshop.
Labour cannot be paid for in anything other than money, except where otherwise permitted. So an employer cannot say to you, move these boxes and I’ll pay you in beans. It does not matter if you are a part-time or seasonal worker, wages should always be paid in money. As it relates to overtime, the normal hours of work is generally eight (8) per day except otherwise prescribed by statute. Section 3 of the Act states that: Every worker shall be allowed a period of leave with pay of not less than one day for each completed month of employment, every worker who is employed on a half-day basis, shall have the half day counted as a day in the computation of periods of employment and leave with pay, every worker who is employed on a daily or hourly basis, shall be allowed a period of leave with pay of not less than one (1) day for every period of twenty (20) days or one hundred and sixty (160) hours worked as the case may be. While Section 4, specifies that: No employer shall require a worker to take his leave with pay in periods of less than six (6) consecutive days, provided that any of the days which are Sundays or Public Holidays shall not be computed as leave with pay under this Act.
While the Equal Pay Act mandates equal pay for equal work, lack of implementation of this is common, with the gender wage pay gap still standing at 27% in last estimates. Women are still punished in the workplace for their gender and this can be seen in situations such as being paid less for the same job, being looked over for promotions, and being fired or otherwise punished for being pregnant. Sexual harassment in the workplace, also remains a large issue with women often being forced out of jobs or stigmatized in the workplace due to the sexual harassment they experience.
The topic of safety in the Oil & Gas industry and fairness came up quite often. Particular attention was placed on the long hours mandated by the offshore industry, where employees work twelve hours on, and twelve hours off. The Oil and Gas industry has managed to portray these working arrangements as ideal due to options such as working two weeks onshore and two weeks home, matched with a salary that by Guyana’s standards is fairly high. From a health and safety standpoint however, these hours are gruelling and can have immense negative effects on the mind and body, which in turn can lead to decreased attention to work and a lowering of safety standards.
While the point was made that no one is forcing workers to sign these contracts, the reality is that not many are in a strong bargaining position to turn down jobs, particularly when trying to get a foot in a burgeoning industry. There are a lot of gaps in the Labour Act, that promote exploitative businesses with the means to take advantage of their workers and advocating for your rights can be a difficult thing in this space. This becomes even harder given that a lot of workplaces commit to one-year contracts with annual reviews, so those who are deemed as complainers, those who might be keen on joining a union can often find that their contracts are not renewed or that they are unceremoniously dismissed.
If you are starting a new job, or if you simply want to understand more about the terms you have signed on to, then you can take your contracts to the Ministry of Labour, Department of Labour and have them offer advice to you on it. You can also go to the MoL to discuss challenges in the workplace or if there is a matter you believe needs to be investigated. The parameters are that your employment status must be established, and within six months of the incident (except in cases Safety and Health and Discrimination complaints). They are open to Walk-ins or Anonymous Tip Offs – 225-7302.
