In one way or another, the condition of the teaching profession impacts almost every home in Guyana both today and long into the future, and it would be most unfortunate if their resort to the streets is to become an annual affair.
As we ponder constitutional reforms, we need, therefore. to consider if Guyana’s industrial relations environment is sufficiently grounded and law to mitigate, as far as possible, the kind of industrial struggle that we have today.
As such, it is important that we recognize that the present quarrel between the government and the GTU is not merely about the present level of salary increases but more importantly about constitutionally/legally strengthening the unions to enable them to arrive at fair emoluments for teachers and all other workers. The present strike is only one phase of the struggle, at the end of which employers, including the government, must come to recognise that what constitutes fair remuneration must be based on consensual rather than unilateral decision-making. The endgame must include a more robust collective bargaining process, buttressed by constitutional and legal clarity around, among others, the following important areas.
Firstly, a distinguishing feature of this PPP regime is its willingness to use delay to deny citizens their rights in a timely manner. In relation to the teachers, it has dragged out the negotiation process over three years and when in frustration and disgust, the teachers took to the streets, it argues that the strike is illegal because the collective bargaining process has not broken down! When the teachers took the government to court to challenge the decision not to pay strikers and to end the checkoff of union dues, the government asked for more time to prepare a defence, hoping that under pressure the strike would peter out and that that would be the end of the matter. The court wisely ruled that the government could take its time so long as it does not disturb the prestrike status quo of the disputed issues.
Industrial relations and collective bargaining are rooted in good faith and normally the latter is a continuous process. But such is not the situation in Guyana, where an autocratic ethnic regime is attempting to bully its ethnic opponents in every arena. It is, therefore, most important that there is constitutional/legal clarity on what constitutes a reasonable time for negotiations to begin and end. There is no international standard, but some countries have legal timeframes for negotiations. In the United States, the National Labor Relations Act mandates that negotiations occur in good faith until an agreement is reached or an impasse is declared. A reasonable timeframe for collective bargaining negotiations is usually a few months at most but not years as in the case of Guyana!
Secondly, employer/employee negotiations usually end in arbitration, and in Guyana some collective agreements dictate that the arbitration panel must contain an equal number of members appointed by the employer and the union and a chairperson agreed upon by the parties. Others, like the GTU agreement give to the relevant minister, usually the minister of labour, the responsibility to appoint the chairperson after consultations with the parties. In Guyana’s context, giving a government minister the right to choose the chairperson in issues having to do with the government is unacceptable and should be changed.
In any case, there should be clear written rules of engagement that make it quite clear that chairpersons are expected to be independent, i.e. not influenced by any relationship s/he may have with the employer or employee and are not employed by either party. The individual should have conceptual and practical knowledge of applicable law and procedure, must also have a clear understanding of how such commissions are to work, must base decisions solely on the evidence, be able to distinguish between facts and opinions, and provide written reasons for decisions, etc.
Thirdly, it is expected that employers will disclose to recognised unions information that will enable them to effectively perform their functions. The legal entrenchment of this requirement is essential. The International Labour Organisation states that ‘information must be disclosed whenever an employer is consulting or bargaining with a representative trade union to allow it to engage effectively with the employer.’ Unions are entitled to information about the negotiation process timeline, participants, and objectives, the employers’ finances – revenue, expenses, profits, etc. Simply put, Cheddi Jagan’s mantra of ‘give them the books’ should be the order of the day.
Fourthly, and perhaps most importantly, the judiciary is a fundamental element of liberal democracy, and no reform process can possibly conclude without its being given serious attention. Some have argued that because of weak constitutional arrangements – the seminal separation of legislature, executive and the judiciary in Guyana is fragile and the system is nearing collapse from want of critical personnel, etc. – the courts’ capacity to make objective judgements, particularly in political cases, is questionable and the adequate enforcement of collective bargaining is very political.
The notion of collapse carries connotations of unintended consequences but one of the first targets of an autocratic regime is usually the judiciary – the main legal obstacle to injustice. After some three decades of its rule, the condition of the judiciary is very much in the PPP’s mode of ‘delay’ and cannot be seriously considered unintended.
The recent ruling in favour of the teachers does not diminish the weight of this contention, but although costly and time consuming, one should still take consolation in the fact that there exists an appeal process outside the autocratic reach of the Guyana government.
Clear contextual conceptualizations and judicial expression on these and other such matters having to do with the rights of workers should be considered during the constitutional reform process with a focus upon strengthening equity in the liberal democratic setting.
