NAACIE sugar workers up pressure for 2011 arbitration compliance

Apr 10, 2014 News

– GuySuCo says actions “unofficial”

Sugar workers represented by the National Association of Agricultural, Commercial and Industrial Employees (NAACIE) yesterday took industrial actions to push for pay that was laid out in accordance with a 2011 arbitration award.
According to NAACIE, yesterday, it has issued an ultimatum to the Guyana Sugar Corporation (GuySuCo) which seeks to have the corporation comply with the Norman McLean Arbitration award and Collective Labour Agreement dated July 8, 2011.
The workers who took part in the actions are all employed at eight estates in Demerara and Berbice and its Head Office, in Ogle, East Coast Demerara.
“This issue has been the result of a very long battle by NAACIE to cause the anomalies that was created by the across the board payment made to all workers regardless of their responsibilities to work, their productivity and importance of their jobs to the Corporation.”
NAACIE said, that the agreement in 2011 came after long and consistent struggle with “many annual imposition of wages” and included the price for the job.
“Because of bunching of salaries caused by that agreement, another agreement was reached between GuySuCo and NAACIE, causing workers with up to ten years service to receive two per cent per year added to the price for jobs for each year of service as their personal salaries.”
The years of service agreement was never a contentious issue between the union and the Corporation, NAACIE said.
“As a result of arbitration ruling and years of service agreements, all adjustments were to be made on the price of the job only. The Corporation’s implementation of the award after the arbitration report is incorrect as pointed out by the union and the Minister of Labour. This is to be done in keeping with our agreement also signed on July 8, 2011.”
NAACIE said that it has issued an ultimatum to GuySuCo and will continue to fight until its members are paid according to the agreement and arbitration award.
Yesterday, GuySuCo said that NAACIE’s action was unofficial and that only a small section of the union’s bargaining unit was on strike.
GuySuCo insisted that the workers are not entitled to the payment and that just 137 workers of approximately 1,000 on strike. The highest number, 39, was on strike at Blairmont.
“Except for Blairmont where the preparation of payroll may be affected, the operations on the other estates, including factory operations, are unaffected.”
GuySuCo said that the union’s General Secretary has refused to confirm that a strike was due to take place. This, therefore, rendered the strike action “unofficial, and a clear violation of the extant grievance procedure”.
The Corporation also pointed out that recently, during the current crop, some NAACIE workers at Blairmont took a two-day industrial action on reason similar today’s. The workers resumed on their own accord without the Corporation conceding to their claim.
“The genesis of the workers’ claim is a misinterpretation of the Norman McLean Arbitration award, which was declared in April last year. The arbitration tribunal, which had comprised Mr. Normal McLean, Chairman; and committee members Drs. Gobind Ganga and Clive Thomas, was appointed to “enquire into the request for a review of the job evaluation agreement between the Union (NAACIE) and the Corporation (GuySuCo) dated July 8, 2011 and to correct the anomalies, if any, that existed after the job evaluation agreement between GuySuCo and NAACIE.”
The tribunal made its award, after presentations by the Union and GuySuCo, in April 2013. The award, which was within the terms of reference, corrected the anomalies that were presented by the Union.
The Corporation said that during several meetings, it advised the union that it could not “acquiesce” to the request for adjustments to the workers’ pay more than what was awarded by the tribunal.
“Despite these meetings with the Corporation and a meeting with the members of the tribunal on October 18, 2013, the union persists in its demand. The Corporation takes the opportunity to call upon the striking workers and NAACIE to allow better sense to prevail so that every opportunity could be taken to assist the Corporation in realizing its production target for this crop.”

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