LABOUR Minister Dr Nanda Gopaul says that while the concerns surrounding the construction of the Marriott Hotel have been noted, there has been an incorrect perception being peddled that Guyanese have been excluded 100 percent from the project.

Dr Gopaul was at the time giving his presentation to the 2013 Budget debates in the House, yesterday, and said that the Ministry has examined the complaints proffered and is satisfied that there are 82 Guyanese workers employed by a private company directly supplying goods and services to the contract held by Shanghai Construction Group.
According to Dr Gopaul, more than 60,000 concrete blocks are being supplied to the project by local manufactures on a monthly basis, while more than 500 cubic metres of mixed concrete per week, as well as  security services, are being provided by Guyanese.
He said that indirectly, Guyanese have a tremendous input to the project, but did concede that there is a need to have a greater priority placed in contracts to protect Guyanese workers.
“We do understand the complaints,” said Dr Gopaul, and announced that the ministry, in conjunction with the Prime Minister’s Office, has sought to work out a formula for employment in similar contracts.
The minister did seek to point out that while the opposition rank and file has been complaining about unemployment, several sectors are in need of a workforce, and further lamented the quality of the existing supply of labour.
He said that the many of the larger projects undertaken locally, such as works on the Linden and Georgetown Public Hospital, as well as several of the local banks constructed recently, would have been delayed by as much as a year, as a result of problems with the supply of labour.
“We have had requests from employers for workers…We have the opportunity to provide jobs in many, many entities, but we are not finding people coming forward to take up the offers,”

The minister appealed to the combined opposition in the House saying,“If you know of people who need jobs, send them…we can absorb them.”
The minister disclosed that currently, there are several hundred vacancies at the Guyana Sugar Corporation (GuySuCo), a situation that is replicated across a number of sectors locally.
“Send them to the Central Recruitment and Manpower Agency,” appealed Minister Gopaul, adding that “we have opportunities, but we want the people to come forward.”
He said that many of the sentiments being expressed by ranks in the opposition during the course of the debate about cutting the budget “will not do us any good.”
Still on the issue of the Marriott, he said that there has been an offer to train local engineers.
“We have taken up the offer and are trying to get employers to send their engineers there on periods of assignment.”
Dr Gopaul lamented what he termed generalisations being made by the opposition members in the House, especially on the matter of unemployment in Guyana.
Responding to statements made by shadow Labour Minister Basil Williams, in his presentation the previous day, Dr Gopaul responded saying that the matter is not as simple as he puts it.
Williams had complained that Dr Gopaul, as Minister of Labour, had intervened in an industrial relations matter with the Guyana Power and Light swiftly, but did not act in the same manner regarding the matter surrounding RUSAL and its workers.
According to the minister, the two matters are completely different in nature.
Dr Gopaul explained that GPL falls under the Essential Services Act, and as such, according to the laws of Guyana, he was obligated to make the move he did, whereas RUSAL did not fall into this category.
He explained that the matter regarding RUSAL had to firstly be dealt with by the relevant labour union, and suggested that it was the union that should have moved promptly to the courts.
This did not happen, and according to Dr Gopaul, the union instead withdrew its representation.
The Labour Ministry is not an enforcer, said Dr Gopaul, but rather a mediator.
“We sought to impose arbitration and quite rightly the union intervened, but the union withdrew, and technically withdrew the case,” said Dr Gopaul in reference to the RUSAL complaint by Williams
The minister, in a review of his sector as part of his presentation to the 2013 Budget debates, firstly praised the fact that the National Expenditures for this year cater for pensioners, the improvement of the standard of living and the continued development of infrastructure, social services, health and education of the nation, among other spheres.
“If you were to traverse the country, you will witness real development,” said Dr Gopaul.
As it relates to his remit at the ministry, Dr Gopaul said that apart from the numerous seminars and training of particularly private sector employees and employers on aspects of the labour and work place safety laws, the ministry has managed to place several thousand persons in jobs.
He spoke to the fact that the ministry has also been able to address also the matter of wages, conditions and hours of work for several categories of workers.
“We have conciliated in disputes and set up arbitration tribunals based on requests,” according to the minister, as he lauded also the several collective bargaining agreements that had been spearheaded by the ministry.
The minister said that with just over 1,000 complaints made by employees against employers in the past year, the ministry has been able to investigate and secure awards of in excess of $32M for aggrieved workers.
He said too that there have also been in excess of 1,000 inspections conducted at workplaces, and 34 employers placed before the courts as a result of breaches and violations of the labour and safety laws.
On the matter of job placement, the minister said that with more than 3,800 applications made to the Central Recruitment and Manpower Agency, almost 3,000 persons have been placed in jobs in the private sector through the department.
He announced that plans are in train to have the unit serve more regions in the country.
The minister noted also that while the public service in several countries across the world has been cutting back on its workforce as a result of financial difficulties, the government, through the Public Service Ministry, has been able to fill some 573 vacancies in the public sector during the course of 2012.