GTUC joins Court fight against Govt’s move to cut teachers’ salaries

Mar 07, 2024 Court Stories, Features / Columnists, News

Kaieteur News – The Guyana Trades Union Congress (GTUC) has been granted permission to join the High Court case of the Guyana Teachers’ Union (GTU) versus the Government of Guyana.

General Secretary of the GTUC, Lincoln Lewis

The application was granted by Justice Sandil Kissoon in the High Court on Wednesday. The GTU has challenged Government’s decision to deduct pay from the salaries of striking teachers and also blocking the administration from moving ahead with a decision to discontinue the deduction of union dues from the salaries of teachers on behalf of the Union.

The GTUC said in a statement on Monday, that as the federated body, under the rules, it is the duty of the GTUC to represent its affiliates on matters of national importance. The GTUC says it is the largest umbrella Labour Organisation with 14 trade unions that represent teachers, and other workers at universities, and in clerical, technical and skilled trade positions in a variety of areas including mining, education, transport, maritime and local government, electricity, manufacturing, public service, works and sea defence and minibus transportation across Guyana.

“The GTUC wants this nation….to understand that we all stand with our teachers, from nursery throughout our education pursuits. Today the nation’s public-school teachers, from nursery to secondary are demonstrating for better conditions of work. We all have the right and the GTUC as the federated body for teachers stands proud with every single teacher in the struggle.”

Further, the GTUC underscored that the teachers’ right to collective bargaining is protected in the International Labour Convention, the Constitution and Laws of Guyana.

General Secretary of the GTUC, Lincoln Lewis said that he has been advised by Attorney-at-Law Roysdale Forde that while the GTU’s case is about matters related to the teaching profession, the action raises significant and important legal matters which go to the core of industrial relations and its practice and workers’ rights. Further, Forde advised Lewis that the legal issues involve the examination of the nature of and extent of the Constitutional fundamental rights of association and assembly, property and the Constitutional rights of Trade Unions to enter into Collective Agreements and their workers to strike. “The determination of the aforesaid significant and important legal issues would impact the operations of each of the constituent members of the Guyana Trades Union Congress and the rights of the approximately 27,000 employees who are members of the members Unions of the Guyana Trades Union Congress,” the GTUC leader said.

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General Secretary of the GTUC, Government, High Court, Justice Sandil Kissoon, Lincoln Lewis

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