The government and the various unions which reached wage deals following collective bargaining must be complimented for the maturity which had to have been shown on all sides for agreements to be clinched.
These deals were also struck outside of the public glare and that in itself might have created conducive conditions. When these matters are argued in the eye of the public it is usually with the intention of one side or the other to use publicity to prosecute their case and this inevitably leads to a ratcheting up of rhetoric and crossed signals.
It was somewhat of a surprise that there was an agreement between the Guyana Public Service Union (GPSU) and the government. At last word, the GPSU had issued a strike ultimatum to the government. What followed thereafter was complete silence from the two sides until an agreement was reached.
As announced by President Ali on December 10th, the two sides agreed a 10 percent salary increase to be paid to all public servants for 2024, retroactive to 1st January 2024, which amounts to a 35 percent cumulative salary increase over the four years from 2021 to 2024.
They have also agreed to an 8 percent salary increase to be paid to all public servants for 2025, retroactive to 1st January 2025, which would amount to a 46 percent cumulative salary increase over the five years from 2021 to 2025.
The agreement also caters for debunching of salaries within the public service with effect from 1st July 2024, in order to recognise longevity of service. Effective 1st January 2025, allowances will be introduced for persons who furthered studies in various areas.
It cannot be overstated at all how significant this agreement is in the context of industrial relations, trade unionism and collective bargaining. A major and crippling strike by the GPSU in 1999 severely debilitated the Janet Jagan presidency. It led to substantial awards from an arbitration tribunal to thousands of public servants, something that the PPP and its subsequent governments never forgot. In the ensuing years, PPP/C governments imposed at the end of each year whatever increase they thought was acceptable. Collective bargaining was defenestrated and the GPSU appeared to have lost its militancy and ability to mobilise. There was the occasional strike and fierce invective whenever the increase was imposed but that was about it. At some point there will be a historical examination of the GPSU’s performance since 1999.
Tuesday’s comprehensive agreement between the two sides was therefore only the second in 25 years and historic by any measurement. The government also announced that a deal was reached with the two University of Guyana unions, the University of Guyana Workers’ Union and the University of Guyana Senior Staff Association. Their deal was for three years and mirrored the agreement that was struck earlier this year with the Guyana Teachers’ Union (GTU).
This accord delivers 10% salary increases in 2024, 8% in 2025, and 9% in 2026. It had been some time since the university unions had taken industrial action over pay.
No doubt allied to the revival of collective bargaining, GuySuCo and the main sugar union GAWU announced on Wednesday an historic three-year deal. This, the two sides acknowledged, marks the first multi-year agreement between GuySuCo and GAWU since the union’s recognition in 1976.
Under the terms of the agreement, workers will benefit from annual increases of 10% in 2024, 8% in 2025, and 9% in 2026. Retroactive increases for 2024 will be disbursed in December 2024, with the new rates taking effect from January 2025. Over the three-year period, these adjustments will amount to a cumulative increase of just over 29%, representing a $5 billion investment in the workforce, a joint release from the two sides said.
It must not be ignored that this reinvigoration of collective bargaining is solely due to the heroic militancy of the Guyana Teachers’ Union whose members pounded the pavement for 75 days in all parts of the country and defied the intransigence of the government and the Ministry of Education. Were it not for the sacrifice of the teachers, this blooming of collective bargaining would not have seen the daylight. While the members of the GTU may have gotten less than they expected from the final agreement reached with the government, their role in paving the way for the public service deal and others should not go unheralded. Aside from its ultimatum, the GPSU can point to little effort to pursue the case for public servants. This PPP/C government, after callously denying collective bargaining for four years was obligated to resume these agreements as a result of rulings of the court and the determination of the GTU.
With General Elections scheduled for next year, the government has earned a bonus for itself by ensuring that there will be calm on the industrial relations front.
The only other point that should be made here is that the long-awaited wages policy should be an integral part of manifestos at next year’s general election. The policy should encircle the huge increase in oil revenues, annual Cost of Living adjustments, what the scale of increases should be without triggering swingeing inflation and equity across the public service. It will not undermine collective bargaining but simply set parameters which would enable orderly discussions and across administrations.
According to the International Labour Organisation “When wage policies are well designed and effectively implemented, they can be a powerful tool to protect workers against unduly low pay and ensure a just share of the fruits of progress to all. Well-crafted wage policies can also have positive effects on labour productivity – both at the enterprise level and at the aggregate economy-wide level”.
There is great sense in setting the stage for a comprehensive wage policy.
