THE development of any society is contingent on its most vital and valuable resource — its human capital. Workers and employers share a symbiotic relationship wherein, without the input of the former, the wheels of production, distribution and consumption would grind to a halt, and the latter — with their goods and services – are compromised; and even breaking even, much less being profitable, becomes daunting.

As such, a stable industrial environment redounds to the benefit of the employer, worker, and society as a whole; and in pursuit of a nation’s holistic development, it becomes incumbent upon government to foster and maintain that conducive environment.

Yet, within recent years, there have been serious breakdowns in the worker/employer relationship, evident in instances wherein workers were not paid the stipulated national minimum wage; or were not paid at all for their labour; or were deprived of holiday, sick and vacation payments; or were fearful to speak out, lest they be fired; or were forced to sign in wage books for amounts greater than what they had received; or had NIS contributions deducted from their emoluments and not paid over to the scheme; or were made to work under hazardous and unhealthy conditions; or were occasionally forced to work in conditions that were hostile to stipulated legal requirements.

Thus, Friday’s event where Guyana signed onto the International Labour Organisation’s Decent Work Country Programme for 2017-2021 is a welcomed move. The programme, which ran its first phase during 2012-2015, is propelled by the collaborative efforts of the ILO Decent Work Team and the Ministry of Social Protection.

As was observed by General Secretary of the Guyana Trades Union Congress, Lincoln Lewis, the previous administration mismanaged the first phase of the programme which he termed as “something set out to deceive workers and citizens” because while it was promoted, it was never activated. Lewis recommended, that in this phase, the Labour Department should be adequately staffed in order to properly discharge its duties and suggested that a public awareness and education programme be launched to attract persons to come on board with the project.

Decent work promotes fair treatment of workers and respect for their rights. It is troubling when workers are made to labour for a longer period than the stipulated eight-hour work day without being paid overtime, as required by law; or are denied their legally mandated break periods, in addition to being denied their constitutional right to join a trade union of their choice or to engage in collective bargaining.

The right to work in an environment where safety and health are assured is enshrined in the Occupational Safety and Health Act, whose stipulations include responsibility of the employer to provide safe working conditions which include, where necessary, safety gear such as goggles, safety boots and respirators. The right to join a union of choice and to engage in collective bargaining are protected in Article 147 of the Guyana Constitution. The responsibility of the employer to deduct and, in a timely manner, pay over NIS contributions for workers is clearly stated under the NIS Law.

As a member of the International Labour Organisation (ILO), Guyana has ratified a number of conventions; therefore, any attempt in violating workers’ rights and employers abrogating their responsibilities will be more than passing concerns.

A country cannot trade and develop if its activities are not conducted within its prescribed laws and international standards. Its citizens cannot feel valued — neither would they want to give of their labour for the nation’s development– when they are treated as second-class citizens. Every agreement, be it regional or international, carries a basic requirement that all productive activities be conducted within minimum, acceptable international standards – the bedrock of Guyana’s laws.

For instance, the Trade Agreement between CARIFORUM and the European Union stipulates that the Region will produce its products respecting ILO Core Labour Standards. These standards include no forced labour, no child labour, safe working conditions, the right to collective bargaining, and freedom to join a trade union of choice. These tenets are enshrined in local laws, and violation of any carries consequences of Guyana being citied and our products facing rejection in the international market.