Dear Comrades,
Here we reproduce a letter
written by Staff Writer Lincoln Lewis on 12th November, 2015 to the
Editor Stabroek News (published in http://www.stabroeknews.com) relating to the problems of Guyana
Agricultural and General Workers' Union. The points raised by the writer are almost
similar in nature for each worker/trade union/Govt.
Kindly have a look.
Dear Editor,
Issues of industrial relations are not
about how one feels, but about a body of rules and applications that
guide the discipline. The current approach in handling industrial
relations grievances, be it in bauxite, sugar, public service or other,
ought not to be done without regard to protected fundamental rights and
freedoms, the constitution, laws and international trade agreements.
Thirty years ago rights and freedoms were not part of trade and
development agreements. As such some actions within countries would have
been overlooked by the international community, unlike what is taking
place today. The current trade agreement between the European Union and
Cariforum, which Guyana has signed on to, has ensconced a chapter that
attends to the social responsibility of the parties, which includes
protection of the right to join a trade union of choice and collective
bargaining. Given that the present approach to development is guided by a
number of tools and not gut-feeling, unless efforts are made to
identify and adhere to these tools, a country can likely be sanctioned
at the international level for violations and transgressing
international protocols. The perception that the impasse in the sugar
industry is politically engineered has nothing to do with the rights of
the workers to pursue, through their union, collective bargaining as
protected in Section 23(1) of the Trade Union Recognition Act and
Article 147 of the Guyana Constitution.
In pursuing justice in
society the government has the greater responsibility, and in industrial
relations there are two agencies that the government is expected to
deal with:- the employer and the workers’ organisation (trade union). It
is not the role of government, however tempting it may be, to vocalise
the accusation that a trade union’s motive is political, because the
government also risks being accused of seeking to trample on the rights
of workers under the guise of political accusations. Moreso such
accusation creates the environment for pitting groups against each
other. The fact the GuySuCo has been able to say, without being
upbraided, that it will not enter into collective bargaining with the
union on a wage increase is in itself giving tacit support to the
breaking of the law. Doing this is also to give support to the Jagdeo
and Ramotar regimes’ imposition of wages/salary increases on public
servants and their refusal to hold the Bauxite Company of Guyana
Incorporated (BGCI) accountable to the law in regard to the outstanding
grievances of bauxite workers.
GAWU’s wage proposal has been with
the management of GuySuCo since March. Management of an organisation is a
day to day process and there exists a legal agreement between the union
and company as to how grievances will be settled. Management cannot
take its own time to engage the union on matters of import. The same
principle holds true for public servants, bauxite workers and every
management where unions exist.
The law expressly says a collective
labour agreement between a company and union is legal unless otherwise
stated. While workers may not be downing tools protesting, the
industrial relations climate is far from what is expected, since these
are issues that impact rights and freedoms. Guyana can be taken to the
international forum and be censored for violating these sacred tenets.
For while the PPP got away with some violations, the fact that as a
political organisation it gives support to the posture and positions of
GAWU, it is likely that the party will use its political clout at the
international level to have this government censored. To avoid these
unpleasantries and a tarnished reputation the government has to proceed
judiciously. This requires an understanding of roles. For while an
attorney-at-law in a court has a responsibility to represent his client
and present arguments to that effect, in government the role becomes
applying the law, in its strictest sense, including respect for its
spirit and intent. Respect for fundamental rights and freedoms ought to
guide and be the cornerstone in applying decisions and recommendations,
particularly by government and government institutions. The tenuous
industrial relations climate reinforces the need for a Ministry of
Labour, whose traditional task has been to develop and implement
policies that would impact on a number of cross-cutting issues,
including the accumulation of unresolved grievances. Further, the
Minister of Labour is the nation’s chief conciliator in issues
pertaining to industrial and labour relations.
Government is duty bound to do what is right for the society and its people.
Yours faithfully,
Lincoln Lewis
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