Govt in talks with RUSAL to recommence operations — Minister Hamilton tells fired workers

Minister of Labour Joseph Hamilton met with former employees who were laid off by the RUSAL Bauxite Company earlier this year, as the fate of hundreds of workers remains in limbo.
The meeting was held at the Watooka Complex in Linden where the aggrieved employees levelled several complaints against the company.
This meeting came in the wake of a meeting between the Ministry and the bauxite company during which it was found that the company made excuses regarding economical and technical issues as it relates to recommencing operations.

He noted that RUSAL was urged to document these concerns and submit a document to the Government as it has signalled its intention to remain in Guyana.
Hamilton said he will be looking at the labour issues which are of importance. He explained that a joint technical team will be established to review all of the issues from the standpoints of the company and Government.

“I don’t want to act or formulate any policy based on my perception…I want to hear from you… I said to RUSAL this would not be a merry-go-round, also document issues with a timeline to them for resolution… I plan to keep abreast with the Union. I know that there are several burning issues but the only thing, going forward that I can is plan for the present and we will think about the future… we have to ensure that whatever happened in the past, don’t happen again”, the Minister said.
A former employee, Keith Velloza, told the Minister that the company is no longer in operation and he along with his colleagues are eager to know what is happening. He stressed that they have been on the breadline since January, which affects their livelihood.

“We need employment, we need jobs, we need to put foods on our tables. We need some word of comfort financially”, Velloza said as he enquired about the position of laid-off employees.
Minister Hamilton said the absence of a budget presents some difficulties but pointed out that Government is in the process of preparing an emergency budget which can ultimately address issues such as these.
In the meantime, he noted that systems will be put in place to allocate resources to frontline workers. The Minister said Government and RUSAL now have to examine the feasibility of recommencing the operations.

A former crane operator stated “We want work but we don’t want to work under these conditions… RUSAL problem is they don’t want to pay, they don’t want workers to join the Union…we are not going to sit here and work under these conditions”, the former employee said.
In response, the Minister stated that these issues are not allowed to reoccur in the future. He said once Government is sure that the company wants to stay, a new agreement can be put in place.
In the interest of the workers, the company will be given another opportunity.

“We will be engaging them and we’ll see how it plays out”, Minister Hamilton said as he noted that the fundamental rights of the workers are important and as such, should not be taken advantage of. He also urged the former workers to document their concerns.
Another former employee, Lester Junor, accused the company of flouting all of the laws of Guyana, including workers’ rights.

“They are here as investors and they need to adhere to the rules here”, he said. The former employee said the company operated freely and he hopes this will change. He stressed that they must commit to adhere by rules and labour laws of the country in moving forward as he noted that the workers are intimidated.
According to the employees, the river was blocked as a “method” used by the company to lay off workers as they alleged that it disregarded the Department of Labour.

One man claimed that there was never a shortage of fuel but the excuse was one that was used to lay off workers. He alleged that the company wants workers to work in “slavery-like” conditions. The former employee said the company needs to abide by the laws and reinstate all employees if they want to stay.
On that note, the Minister noted that in the future, there will be local labour officers to police the company as well as Occupational Safety and Health officers.

Hamilton explained that he has an open-door policy and pointed out that he has received a lot of reports from employees across the country over the past few weeks.
He said Government has zero tolerance for employers who believe that they can take advantage of employees.

Also speaking at the meeting, Trade Unionist Lincoln Lewis said he wants to give an opportunity to the present Government to correct the “transgressions” affecting the employees as he noted that their rights and the rule of law take precedence in a civilised society.

Moving forward, he urged the bauxite workers to give the Minister an opportunity to correct those “wrongs”.
With the re-establishment of the Ministry, Lewis noted that the task is to ensure that the Labour Ministry is properly tooled to represent the interest of workers and their rights.
The Minister and team also visited Kwakwani, Ituni, Hururu and other communities to listen to workers’ concerns.