The Guyana Court of Appeal yesterday rejected the State’s attempt to stay an order mandating the deduction and remittance of union dues to the GTU.
Following a strike by teachers last year, the state had moved to cease deductions of dues on behalf of the Guyana Teachers’ Union (GTU) but this had been challenged in the High Court and the union secured an interim order in its favour.
The ruling yesterday by the Court of Appeal upholds the decision of Justice Sandil Kissoon, who on 17 April 2024, required the Government of Guyana to continue deducting union dues from the salaries of GTU members and ensuring those dues are remitted to the union.
According to a release from the GTU’s lawyer Darren Wade, Justice Dawn Gregory, in delivering the Court of Appeal’s judgment, emphasized that the balance of justice favoured the GTU. She stated that granting the State’s request for a stay would cause undue prejudice to the union, which has been advocating for the continued collection of these dues.
The legal dispute began earlier in February 2024, when Justice Kissoon granted an interim order preventing the Government from halting the deduction of dues. This order was made permanent in April. However, despite these clear judicial directives, the Government has refused to comply with the court’s orders.
In the press release, Wade condemned the Government’s actions, describing them as contemptuous and an affront to the judicial process. The union is now considering further legal actions in response to the ongoing defiance of court rulings.
The opposition PNCR yesterday said it has taken note of another legal victory that has been secured by the GTU and its members.
“This victory is an indication that justice has been served and that the strength, unity and resilience demonstrated by the teachers during those seventy five (75) days were grounded in the laws that are enshrined in our constitution. We must note too that despite the clear judicial directives, the PPP/C Government has continued to ignore the order, thus refusing to reinstate the deduction and remittance of the dues to the Union. This blatant disregard of the law in full public view demonstrated by the PPP/C is simply saying that the PPP/C believes that they are the law or that they are above the law, which is contrary to how democratic governments operate. This must act must not be taken lightly.
“The PNCR, therefore, joins with all law-respecting Guyanese locally and abroad to congratulate again the Guyana Teachers’ Union, its membership and legal team on a victory that is well deserved, and a significant milestone for Labour. We pledge to all teachers that as the next government, we will increase your salary by up to thirty-five (35) percent and raise the tax-free threshold to $400,000 a month. We will also ensure that the impact of this increase is felt because we will also address the high cost of living and other conditions of work. We will address your needs in a more professional and responsible and timely manner”, the party said.
Background
Saying that it was “dissatisfied with the whole” of the April 19 decision of Justice Kissoon the state filed a notice of appeal against the judgment and also sought a stay of execution of part of the judgment that barred the Education Ministry from discontinuing the deduction of union dues from teacher’ salaries and remitting same to the GTU.
In his affidavit to support the appeal and the stay of the ruling as it relates to the union dues, Chief Education Officer, Saddam Hussain said that in taking the decision to discontinue remitting union dues to the GTU, the government took into consideration, the lack of good faith displayed by the union in resorting to strike action – an industrial process of last resort – despite ongoing engagement between the two sides. He argued that those engagements resulted in the granting, to date, of some 30 of the 41 demands made by the GTU in the 20l9-2023 Multi-Year Proposal and an additional 28 measures granted on the Government’s own initiative.
The government, according to Hussain, also took note of the GTU’s breach of the 1990 Avoidance and Settlement of Disputes Agreement by seeking arbitration unilaterally, and then proceeding to strike in the face of the ongoing good faith negotiations between the parties.
“The Government of Guyana could not in the prudent exercise of its responsibilities, continue to participate and facilitate the deduction of Union dues from teachers’ salaries and remit same to the Applicant, in the face of the blatant statutory breaches committed by the [Respondent GTU], more particularly set out as follows: failure to file annual returns for close to 2 decades…; and failure to submit Financial Statements for the [Respondent GTU] for auditing for over 35 years”, Hussain stated.
In his judgment, Justice Kissoon granted a declaration that any deduction or withholding of remuneration by government from the salaries of teachers who were engaged in industrial action between February 5, 2024, and March 4, 2024, would be arbitrary, unlawful, unreasonable and without legal basis.
Further, the declaration that government’s decision contained in a letter of February 6, 2024, issued by the Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Education to discontinue the deduction and remittance of Union dues under the check-off system, constituted a violation of Article 147(1) of the Constitution which guarantees to the members of the Union, the fundamental right of Freedom of Association.
He finally declared that decision to have been discriminatory and in violation of the fundamental rights guaranteed under Article 149(d) of the Constitution, the effect of which he said, constitutes a substantial interference and denial of the fundamental rights guaranteed under Article 147.
That decision, he said, was one tainted with arbitrariness, mala fides, and was unlawful as well as the decision denying the union an opportunity of being heard before discontinuing the deduction and remittance of dues under the check-off system, in breach of legitimate expectation.
