—Prime Minister Hinds tells CPSA annual conference
THE 40th annual conference of the Caribbean Public Services Association (CPSA) was declared opened last Sunday evening by Prime Minister Samuel Hinds under the theme “Celebrating 40 years of history working together to conquer current challenges”. Several representatives of the Public Service Unions across the Caribbean were present at the ceremony at the National Cultural Centre, Homestretch Avenue, Georgetown.
Others in attendance included Leader of the Opposition, Robert Corbin, Members of Parliament and the Diplomatic Corps, Georgetown Mayor Hamilton Green and trade union leaders.
Prime Minister Hinds said it was a privileged opportunity for him to extend greetings to the participants of the conference noting that it brought together public services from across the Caribbean.
Hinds remarked that “public servants are special workers” as they carry out work directed by the Government to enhance the lives of citizens.  The challenge in doing this, he said, is that these workers are directed by the Government of the day to which they may not be aligned.
It is for this reason that “public servants are special employees,” he reiterated, adding that when Government has to cut back on certain things, public servants are usually the ones to be put under pressure.
He observed that the threat of the regional economic crisis seems to be behind Guyana at present, and noted that when Governments try to bring their financial situations under control in developed countries, public servants are negatively affected. However, he said Guyana has managed to avoid such actions at this time.
Hinds said it seems as though developed countries took certain paths to arrive at where they are today, but these should be considered closed as they are no longer good paths.
“I believe and have the faith that we can work things out. The country we live in is the country we would have created,” he remarked.
President of CPSA, Mr. Patrick Yarde, expressed appreciation for Government’s support and assistance to the Union on this occasion.
He said the call for harmonious government and public service relationship is still relevant today, and that one of the current concerns is to retain benefits which were hard fought for and won over the years, at great sacrifice.
Yarde, who is also the President of the Guyana Public Service Union (GPSU), said the objective of the conference must be to arrive at concrete recommendations and suggestions designed to further the interest of the membership.
He observed that the impact of the global crisis facing the economies of states has devastated the more advanced and developed states, and has certainly not missed Guyana.
“It is a reflection of the reality that we in the Caribbean are always in danger of catching a cold from the sneezes of the developed states, with serious adverse consequences for employment opportunities, conditions of service and the welfare of all employees, including those located in the public service”.
Yarde said cooperation and collaboration are therefore imperative in order to achieve an adequate understanding of the realities facing communities and strive to arrive at ways and means of addressing and combating common problems.
“We must use this opportunity to advance the virtues of the Trade Union Movement since it is on occasions like this, when members of the working class are in need, that they recognize those who are sincerely caring and concerned about their welfare and wellbeing. We are strategically placed, and so is that vehicle of sincerity that is there to reach out to them,” Yarde stated
Deputy Secretary General of the Caribbean Community (CARICOM), Ms Lolita Applewhaite, said the Association’s 40th anniversary is no mere feat, given the global challenges.
She said it is a milestone reached which signals maturity and further growth as an organization, and that it stands proud with its collection of wisdom. The breadth and depth of its membership is impressive, she added.
Applewhaite opined that no country can function without a committed public service union, and related that among some of the items to be dealt with by the conference are business, youth, culture and climate change.