Industrial action planned by workers of City Hall over the non-remittance of deductions in regard to the National Insurance Scheme (NIS), the Guyana Revenue Authority (GRA), and the Public Service Credit Union was called off on Tuesday hours before it commenced.
City Hall
According to the City Treasurer, the Municipality owes the Public Service Credit Union more than $26 million; the NIS is owed $127.4 million, and the GRA is owed $132 million. The administration would have made payments of $10.3 million and $10.4 million respectively to the NIS and the Credit Union.
These huge sums outstanding on their behalf, coupled with workers complaining about not being able to access NIS benefits, have led the Guyana Labour Union (GLU) to instruct workers to withdraw their services on Tuesday.
However, City Hall, in a statement, explained that the Town Clerk, the Human Resource Manager, the City Treasurer and the Social Welfare Officer, along with other officials of the Council, met with the leadership of the GLU to discuss matters of importance to the welfare of workers within the employ of the Council. This meeting reportedly occurred about one hour before the workers would have proceeded with their planned strike.
The statement related that Town Clerk Royston King explained to the Union that insofar as remittance of deductions to the National Insurance Scheme is concerned, the city’s administration has already addressed that issue with the management of that agency. Additionally, similar arrangements are being put in place to deal with Council’s outstanding accounts at the Guyana Revenue Authority and the Public Service Credit Union.
In an attempt to defend the non-remittance of the workers’ statutory deductions, City Hall said that, over the last two years, they have been investing that money into the development of the city.
“Over the last two years, the Council intensified its campaign to sustainably restore and develop the city of Georgetown. This was done with the extremely limited resources of the Council. This included upgrading existing green open spaces and creating new ones, developing new recreational facilities for children, repairing and restoring bridges, desilting canals and other waterways in the city, (effecting) repairs to sluices and allied drainage equipment, and restoring municipal buildings. As a result, there were some delays in remitting deductions to NIS, GRA and the Credit Union. However, these matters are being properly addressed,” the statement read.
At Monday’s statutory meeting, Councillor Andrea Marks declared it a “shame” that because of the administration’s ineptitude, workers were being denied their benefits when they go to NIS.
Councillor Bishram Kuppen has called for a written report on the issue, and for the matter to be addressed urgently by the Finance Committee.
Finance Committee Chairman, Councillor Oscar Clarke, said the issue has been engaging the attention of the Committee, and noted that with the current financial position of the Municipality, had it gone ahead and made those payments, the workers would have been waiting longer periods for their wages and salaries.
Clarke has suggested that the municipality consider downsizing the number of staff members, since salaries account for 68 percent of the council’s revenue.
