– Rusal to give answer today

THE government on Friday restated its position that the 60 workers fired by the Bauxite Company of Guyana Inc. (BCGI), owned by Russian company RUSAL, must be reinstated.
A top RUSAL executive is to make a statement on the issue by today.
This news was met with resounding applause and praise of gratitude, when it was delivered by Minister of Social Protection Amna Ally, during a visit she paid on Friday to the workers at their Maple Town, Aroaima location and reaffirmed to the workers that “the government is on your side”.
“This government can’t be supportive of anyone who wants to treat our workers anyhow. We will not allow it. There’s no question of our allegiance, because home comes first,” Ally assured the workers.

“We view this matter to be a serious one and very important for us as a government. From the onset we are behind you… we are supportive of the workers of this company… don’t feel for any moment that we are against you. We will work with you to ensure everything is restored to its fullest.”
During the visit, the minister took the opportunity to distribute some 75 hampers to the workers, as they await word on their reinstatement.
The workers outlined some 10 issues that they would like to see addressed, which included a call to see their many issues with BCGI resolved by a tripartite Arbitration Tribunal, and a comprehensive safety audit be carried out by the Occupation Safety and Health Department of the MoSP.
It was last Monday that BCGI fired some 61 employees with immediate effect, after they went on strike on Friday, February 15. One employee has since been reinstated, but the fate of the others is still in the balance.
Engagement with the company began on Tuesday, February 19, when representatives met with the Department of Labour (DoL).
Minister Ally was accompanied on the Friday visit by a team that included Minister of Labour Keith Scott and Chief Labour Officer Charles Ogle. She explained to the workers that RUSAL is expected to give the final word on their reinstatement before RUSAL’s Director of its Alumina and Bauxite Department, Sergey Kostyuk, leaves Guyana to return to Russia.
“He is returning [today] so we want an answer before he leaves. The indication I’m getting is that they have resolved to reinstate the workers and now work with them on Terms of Resumption and look at other elements of our demands,” Ally related to the gathering of workers and their supporters.
The minister was also firm in establishing that the issue of the recognition of the Guyana Bauxite and General Workers Union (GBGWU) as the workers’ official bargaining agent was over because the company was instructed that GBGWU is the recognised union by the Trade Union Board.
GBGWU General-Secretary Lincoln Lewis was present at Maple Town during Minister Ally’s visit on Friday.

It was last Thursday that a team from the government had met with Kostyuk and RUSAL Country Representative Vladimir Permyakov, when the government’s position on several issues was established, and it was planned that Minister Ally would make the visit.
Apart from the demand for reinstatement of the dismissed workers and the recognition of the workers’ union of choice, the government told the company that the issues that prompted the workers’ strike needed to be addressed, and told them that the demand by the company that the workers vacate the Maple Town community, which is owned by the company, was inhumane.
The government’s action marks the biggest progress in an almost 10-year challenge by the employees to be properly addressed by the company, which they say over the years has been arbitrarily dismissing, suspending and disciplining workers. Employees have also complained of having their vacation and holiday benefits cut by management without any consultations with the employees.
Though they have been arguing for years, the employees decided enough was enough earlier this month, when the company sought to impose a one per cent salary increase. At Friday’s meeting, the employees said when the salary increase circular was sent out they sought to meet with management and air their concerns, but were not given a chance to do so.
Following Tuesday’s meeting with the DoL, Permyakov defended the one per cent increase the employees got, saying it was not a voluntary decision taken by management in Guyana, but was actually a calculated decision by the parent company in Russia based on their computation of Guyana’s inflation rate. They calculated it at 0.9 per cent and decided to round up and give one percent, Permyakov explained.
Minister Ally was questioned about this at Friday’s meeting and was quick to point out that the government has never given one per cent increase to any of its public servant workers.