…Labour Dept. urges them to return to work, union refuses

WORKERS attached to the Linden Mayor and Town Council (LMTC) are currently engaged in strike action as they press demands for an increase in wages and salaries.

The workers have downed tools a few days and the municipality is already experiencing the ripple effects, particularly in garbage collection services. The departments that are participating in the strike include the Constabulary, Engineering and the Solid Waste Department. With solid waste workers on strike, there has been a garbage pile-up particularly in the market area, which has been deemed a major concern for vendors. The LMTC has since sent out a notice, that it has garnered the assistance of Cevon’s Waste Management, a private garbage collection company, until things return to normalcy.
The workers are calling for their salaries to meet the current minimum wage standard, but the council claims that as a result of their cash-strapped position, they are unable to meet this demand; only if they are given a bail out by the government, something they have been soliciting for some time now.

The workers are also demanding that their NIS contributions be paid as well as retroactive payments owed for 2019. “I am a constable employed at the council since 2015, and when I recently went and check my contribution, they said no contribution for me for four years…. they have retroactive monies for us and nobody come to say anything, even when we keep querying. I am a single mother, it is very hard on me,” one worker told the media. Another said, “we need the big ones to meet with us so we can voice our concerns to them, because they don’t know what is going on. They don’t tell you anything and when you don’t work, they victimise you, so we are waiting to see if we get judgement from the big ones and the union (Guyana Labour Union) here backing us.”

Deputy Mayor, Wainwright Bethune, definitively said that the council is not in a position to pay an increase, with its current financial circumstances. “The council is not in a position to pay and sustain that significant increase, given that our revenue has been depleted at certain locations. We would want to pay the workers up to the current minimum wage, but we cannot sustain that,” he said. Bethune said that the council has engaged Central Government for a bail out, since the council inherited over $200Ms in debt, particularly to NIS.

While it may be justifiable that the council increase service rates, as well as rates and taxes, this cannot be unilaterally imposed on the residents and vendors, without the necessary consultation. In addition, 60 per cent of those registered to pay rates and taxes in the municipality have outstanding balances, bringing the total in excess of $9M, up to August, despite the pay scale has not been upgraded since the 1970s and is as low as $1000 and $1200 per year.

On Monday, representatives from the council as well as Town Clerk Orleena Obermuller, met with the Department of Labour (DoL) to determine the way forward. Obermuller related that officials advised that the Guyana Labour Union should have their workers return to work on Tuesday, since the ultimatum that was given by the union was met.
The union had written the council seeking an engagement with them. This was done but the meeting was not deemed fruitful. Therefore, it is the onus of the Union to inform the council on a new ultimatum, since not doing so, would be deemed illegal.
When the Guyana Chronicle contacted Mr. Carvil Duncan, General Secretary of the Guyana Labour Union (GLU), he deemed the advice as poor, and said that he will be writing the council, informing them that the ultimatum is in fact activated, noting that the three meetings held, were all a waste of time, since the objective of settling the wage situation, was not met. The first meeting, he said, there was not a quorum, while the other two, ended unfavourably.

The GLU, wrote the council on October 14, requesting a meeting with the council, in relation to a circular that was sent out by the Local Government Commission, which stated that all Municipal workers must not work for wages below $64,200 and such payments should be retroactive, from January 2019. Duncan claimed that the council was reluctant to meet with the union and a subsequent letter was sent, threatening strike action. The General Secretary said he will not be following the advice of DoL to have the workers return to work, as it is the union’s prerogative that the workers must not continue to suffer by receiving low wages.