The Guyana Bauxite and General Workers Union (GB&GWU) yesterday said it has submitted its terms and conditions on behalf of striking workers for a return to normalcy in the operations of the Bauxite Company of Guyana Inc. (BCGI) following a bilateral meeting with the management of the company.
The union, which noted that it has lobbied for the reinstatement of dismissed workers, said it is now awaiting a response from the RUSAL-owned company.
The meeting was convened at 10 am in the boardroom of the law firm of Hughes, Fields and Stoby and comprised of GB&GWU President Leslie Gonsalves, General Secretary Lincoln Lewis, Assistant Secretary, Sheldon Thomas and BCGI branch leaders Ephraim Velloza and Sheldon Thomas. Vladimir Permyakov, Mikhail Krupenin and Mohamed Akeel represented the BCGI.
The meeting followed weeks of refusal by the company to negotiate with the union and Lewis, and the dismissal of 90 workers since February 18th and the partial shutdown of its operations.
According to a press release from the union, the two parties met in “an amicable environment” to hold the bilateral discussions, which saw the union advocating for the reinstatement of the dismissed workings and having discussions on the removal of the barricade in the Upper Berbice River, which has prevented the movement of the company’s barges.
The release explained that the union submitted to the company, in writing, the terms and conditions upon which normalcy can be returned at the workplace and also took the opportunity to explain to the company’s delegation the rationale and justification behind every issue appearing in the document.
The deliberations between the two parties lasted for an hour and will continue at another meeting on March 19th, since no agreement was arrived at given that the company representatives related that they have to consult with their principals in Russia from the BCGI’s parent company, RUSAL.
“The Union, while concerned about the absence of decision-making, is prepared to wait on a response expected at the next meeting as this will determine the way forward and the genuine commitment of BCGI [to] engaging the Union with integrity and willingness for mutually acceptable decision. Until such time the impasse remains,” the statement added.
It also related that the workers, in solidarity with members of the community, are still blocking the river and the union continues to rely on the support of society and government to remain engaged until workers on strike and those who were unlawfully dismissed are returned to duty with no interruption in service or loss of seniority.
After the company refused to attend a meeting with the union facilitated by the Labour Department on February 18th, it then fired 61 striking workers and claimed that clauses in their contracts prevented them from taking industrial actions. One worker was subsequently rehired.
Despite multiple meetings between the government and company, no middle ground was found and the actions by striking workers intensified. Eventually, the workers opted to block the Berbice River, preventing BCGI’s barges from entering or exiting.
Thirty more workers were also fired as the company was forced to close down parts of its operations and it had made it clear that it would not be rehiring them.
The two parties finally agreed to meet this week after a 26-day-long stalemate, and decided to commence bilateral meetings between themselves to find a way pass the impasse.
The union has also said that it will be asking for better working conditions and salary increases after the unilateral imposition of a one per cent increase by the company, which had prompted the strike.
