Business continues as usual… Defiant Rusal’s expats running operations

Feb 26, 2019 News

Russian-controlled Bauxite Company of Guyana Inc. (BCGI) has remained defiant continuing to run its operations despite an ongoing labour standoff.
According to President of the Guyana Bauxite and General Workers Union (GB&GWU), Ephraim Velloza, there are about six months stockpile of mined bauxite at the Kurubuka mine site area, Berbice River.
BCGI’s Russian ex-pat workers and a number of senior officials are reportedly running the operations, the union representative disclosed.
It will be recalled that two Fridays ago, the company paid workers a one percent increase which was immediately rejected by the shift workers.
The workers demanded to see the management but were ordered to go back to work in two hours.
However, the workers refused and the operations were ordered closed by management.
On Monday last week, 61 of the workers were fired.
The Russian management who were invited to meet with labour officials and union at the Department of Labour’s Brickdam’s office, refused to turn up saying it does not want to engage the union which it does not recognize.
Two officials from BCGI’s head office of Rusal which owns 90 percent of BCGI met with Government last week in which they were warned that they must reinstate the workers and respect the labour laws.
The termination of the 61 workers are a breach of labour laws, the union has said.
On Friday, a government team, including Ministers Amna Ally and Keith Scott, along with Chief Labour Officer, Charles Ogle, travelled to Aroaima, the Region 10 area where the workers live.
There the ministers assured the workers that they are focusing on getting them back their jobs.
The ministers told the workers who have been ordered by Rusal to remove from Aroaima to “stay put”.
They have been holed up there for over a week.
According to Velloza, who is one of the workers who are refusing to move from Aroaima, the foreign workers have told the locals that they are not heeding Government’s warnings.
“The foreign expats told our colleagues that Government is not running their show. They told them to stay to stay on the jobs or else they will suffer the same fate.”
The workers who are performing duties are mainly supervisors.
A number of other workers whose services were terminated have since returned to their duties.
According to the union official there are reports that management has hired private persons to maintain equipment.
“We have about four huge stockpiles that they can dry and process in the next six months. We believe that this is premeditated. They never told us about the one percent and they knew we would not take it easy. They are now trying to get some workers back, send home the rest and laugh at us.”
According to Velloza, there are reports also that the management has hired a number of casual workers.
“We are worried. The government should be worried. This could very well 61 times three workers. These are people are depending on Government for security and surety.”
Yesterday, General Secretary of the union, Lincoln Lewis, said that since the meeting on Friday at Aroaima, Region 10, there has been no word from Rusal on the workers’ fate.
“We are bringing all unions to meet today at 1pm at the Critchlow Labour College to take concerted action. This is worrying.”
According to Lewis, there have been reports from workers that management has told workers they are not bothered by Government.
“I am told the management is not looking after anything that the Government says…they are running things.”
This situation is not unique. In 2009, in about the fourth year of operations, Rusal sacked 57 workers including supervisors for participating in protests for better working conditions.
The company recently said it has not made profits in the 14 years of operations here.
The situation has workers deeply worried as a number of them who were sacked are still at the mine site, without any idea where the next pay is coming from.
Rusal has been accused also of doing little improvements to the work site, in keeping with their investment commitments.

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