The Guyana Public Service Union (GPSU) on Friday voiced its objection to government’s continued “arbitrary imposition” of salary increases on public servants despite the existence of a binding collective bargaining agreement.
At a press conference, GPSU President Patrick Yarde said the union is “fed up with arbitrary impositions,” while making reference to an announcement by Minister of Finance Winston Jordan, who on Thursday said public servants would receive an increase in their salaries that will be retroactive to January 1st of this year.
The announcement was made a day after President David Granger said that he was awaiting word from the Finance Minister on the availability of funds to pay year-end bonuses.
With the announcement it was noted that since coming into office in 2015, the Coalition government has increased public servants’ salaries by 62%.
However, this has been done without the input of the GPSU, which has previously complained about the imposition of increases.
Yarde told the press conference, which was held at the union’s headquarters, that the GPSU had been working together with the government to come to a consensus on the issue of salaries for public servants since May of this year, when it was invited to a meeting with President David Granger. He noted that in an invitation letter, it was stated that the meeting would be held to discuss the salary and working condition issues for public servants.
According to Yarde subsequent to the meeting being held, a request was made for both parties to keep the contents of the meeting confidential until they reached the stage to make a joint announcement.
Yarde added that following the meeting the two parties agreed that they would have a joint committee set up to address wages and salaries. He noted that they viewed a subsequent correspondence from President Granger which thanked Yarde and his team and further expressed the hopes of a favourable outcome from the committee that was to be formed.
He said subsequent to that correspondence, which they would have received in May, they would have entered into a memorandum of agreement. He further noted that after their exchange of the said memorandum of agreement on June 14th, there was no movement. “After our exchange of a memorandum of agreement on the 14th of June, all we were being acquainted with was what was in the press,” Yarde said, while adding that at that time the GPSU was not hasty but it expected that the commitment which was made would have been addressed.
“But we have concluded today that that approach seems to have been scrapped since you’re hearing that the minister arbitrarily will make an announcement on increases,” he added.
Yarde further stated that the GPSU found it disturbing. “We would wish to state that we will respond to any arbitrary increase in a most vigorous manner,” he said.
He noted that they have a legally binding collective agreement and if there are second thoughts about the high level committee that was proposed to the GPSU and agreed on, the union will proceed to go the route provided for by the legally binding agreement.
“Now it seems as though the impression is given that the committee idea is scrapped… the legally binding collective agreement would be not respected, that’s the impression we’re getting and we (the public servants) will be exposed to another imposition and clearly that is in conflict with what was promised to us and we resent it,” Yarde told the conference.
Yarde further added that Minister Jordan’s budget speech in 2015 recognized how inadequate allowances and conditions in the public service were and he lamented that four years after these issues still remain the same.
