Georgetown : The actions of the Georgetown Mayor and Town Council were deemed to be responsible for the closure of municipal markets in the capital city on December 14 and 15, according to Local Government Minister, Norman Whittaker.
The move which left hundreds of vendors, and their customers surprised and upset could have been prevented if the City Council which was supposed to be concerned caring and responsible had pre-empted it and addressed it what led to it in a timely manner, according to the minister. He said there was an available bargaining process to address grievances that exist.
The Guyana Local Government Officers Union and the Guyana Labour Union have collective bargaining agreements with the council and the process sees the Personnel and Training, and Finance Committees meeting and bargaining on behalf of the council. Negotiations between the GLU ultilising the bargaining process, concluded successful negotiations with the aforementioned committees. The negotiations with the GLGOU, which covers technical, administrative and clerical staff, failed to reach resolution after extraneous issues were placed on the bargaining table according to Minister Whittaker.
He said that incredibly these “issues” included increased duty, gratuity and travel allowances retroactive to 2012. This he explained, is contrary to regulations which give the sector minister responsibility for approving any monies for councillors based on recommendations made to him. These are all covered under the Municipal and District Councils Act of 2013. “Such payments are made with the express approval of the minister”.
Slamming the council he stated that, “The demand of a cash strapped, non-performing, inept, lethargic council that has been unable to garner over 50% of its budgeted revenue, and which has found itself hard pressed to deliver even some basic services, maintaining basic infrastructure, the demand is ridiculous.”
There is no nexus between the council’s demands and those of its workers, he stressed. Town Clerk Carol Sooba had attempted to convene a statutory meeting to deal with the matter of the Council’s annual budget, which has already passed the date for its submission and a second on December 8, to address the negotiations between the GLOGU and the council. That latter was chaired by the mayor, and whilst it was suspended after what was described as “two-and-a-half hours of quarrelling”, it emerged that the council reported that if it did not get increased duty and travel allowance, and gratuity retroactive to 2012, they will not approve. They were putting the workers’ interest secondary”. The two meetings failed to reach any consensus and Minister Whittaker, revealed that, even as recently as December 8, efforts by the Town Clerk saw a “round robin” attempt being made to the council to at least approve the workers’ benefits. Five councillors signed on to the agreement, but several others, including the Deputy Mayor, Patricia Chase Green refused or otherwise abstained.
The workers under the GLU could be paid in one day, but some of the main persons who are supposed to help expedite the process, administratively, remain on strike.
The current situation will not however, be allowed to continue and is being monitored closely. The actions of the council have denied the vendors an opportunity to earn. There are additional efforts being made to have the council approve the workers’ payments to facilitate the payment of salaries. A letter outlining the regulations and measures and challenging him to put the workers first, has been dispatched to Mayor Hamilton Green.
Government has spent massive sums to undertake some of the work and services which City Hall traditionally does, Minister Whittaker re-emphasised, and this was partly in an attempt to help the Council realise some savings to effect their work. Despite these interventions, City Hall has not lived up to its expectations according to the minister.
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