Government threatens to suspend collective labor agreement with GPSU

Oct 04, 2020 News

Kaieteur News – The Government has threatened the Guyana Public Service Union (GPSU) to suspend their Collective Labor Agreement following the union’s endorsement of the protest action by local health workers.

Attorney General and Minister of Legal Affairs, Anil Nandlall

Earlier this year, the previous administration signed a two-year collective agreement with the union.
Following the signing of the agreement workers were in for new benefits like pensions, the introduction of paternity leave strictly for men with one partner and bearing the responsibility for their offspring,
“Unless these protest actions cease immediately and the procedures outlined by the law are invoked, the Government will have no alternative but to consider certain options, including but not limited to, the institution of criminal charges, dismissal, termination of contracts of employment, suspension of the collective labor agreement with the GPSU and the suspension of the deduction of union dues for and on behalf of the union,” Attorney General Anil Nandlall said.
This was part of a warning letter issued to the President of the GPSU, Patrick Yarde by Nandlall over the weekend.

President of the Guyana Public Service Union, Patrick Yarde

The Attorney General made it clear that Yarde’s endorsement of the recent protest action by the health care workers is an indication that the GPSU has failed, neglected, and/or refused to direct the health care workers to a legal and acceptable industrial course of action. Instead, the GPSU has misled the workers into violating the law, according to Nandlall.
Further, Nandlall stated that the union has encouraged health care workers to infringe recognized practices in industrial relations both locally and internationally, practices that fall under International Labor Organization (ILO) prescriptions.
“To violate this internationally recognized norm in industrial practice at a time when our nation and indeed world, is facing the worst pandemic in living history amounts to a most cruel, inhuman and unusual abdication of responsibility and may be viewed as conduct amounting to criminal negligence. That citizens may die as a result of the GPSU’s actions, cannot have escaped you,” the Attorney General maintained.
The recent protest action by health care workers began in Linden, when nurses from the Linden Hospital Complex staged a protest, demanding better risk allowance, timely salary payments, and the provision of adequate Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) for them to properly do their jobs. They were followed by nurses from the West Demerara Regional Hospital and eventually nurses from the GPHC.
Following their endorsement of the protests, the GPSU on October 1, gave the government and the Georgetown Public Hospital Corporation (GPHC) an ultimatum, stating that they have 72 hours to give a positive response to the demands, or they will mobilize a full strike action.
Workers have since been refusing to turn up for duty at their respective medical facilities, the most recent incident being health care workers at critical units of the GPHC calling in sick while some simply did not show.
Nandlall stated that the government is indebted to all health care workers for their service. However, in light of recent events- the government is seeing their hand being forced.

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