Labour Ministry, ExxonMobil to develop protocols for inspection of offshore operations

As the People’s Progressive Party/Civic (PPP/C) Administration continues to streamline its policies in the various sectors, it is maintaining that Guyanese in the oil and gas sector must benefit equally with other nationalities.

To this end, the Labour Ministry will be working with US oil giant ExxonMobil – the largest operator offshore – to establish protocols that would facilitate inspection of both offshore and onshore operations.
This was among a series of issues discussed during a meeting between Labour Minister Joseph Hamilton and senior officials of ExxonMobil Guyana. The Minister has insisted that Labour and Occupational Health and Safety officers must be facilitated to conduct their inspections of the company’s operation.
“Exxon has a department that deals with these matters in the industry, and we will have them sit down at the technical level with our people; that is: Labour Department and with the Occupational Health and Safety Department, so that they can together work out the protocols (regarding) how this will happen. And I indicated to them (that) I need for this to happen expeditiously,” Hamilton told the Department of Public Information.
The Minister noted that Chief Labour Officer (CLO) Charles Ogle will very shortly be meeting with representatives of Exxon to begin developing these protocols concerning visitation on the offshore vessels, as well as training.
Minister Hamilton explained that there may be need for more training, since the Occupational Health and Safety Department has been trained for land-based assessments.
Only last week, Vice President Bharrat Jagdeo pointed out that Exxon, which operates in the oil-rich Stabroek Block with its partners, has to play a greater role in assisting Guyana to develop a core team of Guyanese professionals to manage the local petroleum sector.
Jagdeo posited that the paltry US$3000 that the company currently gives is not only insufficient generally, but is not adequate for the training Guyana intends to undertake.
“Now, the company pays millions of US dollars for its bureaucracy, and we share half of the cost; that is, the cost oil. So now they, too, must provide enough funds for Guyana to build a great capacity, its own capacity, to monitor the sector,” he contended.

Equal pay
A similar position was represented by Minister Hamilton during his meeting with the Exxon officials on Wednesday, when they discussed the payment of Guyanese workers and adherence to local labour laws. The Labour Minister posited that ensuring equal pay for local workers in the oil-and-gas sector is a priority for his Ministry.
“I expect that workers must be paid equal pay for equal jobs, and I have indicated to ExxonMobil that there are allegations in the industry that expatriate employees are presently being paid more than Guyanese employees,” Minister Hamilton told DPI.
The Labour Minister said he learnt that the allegations were often in reference to Exxon’s sub-contractors, but noted, “I have said to them, ‘You have an obligation and responsibility to ensure that the sub-contractors and contractors follow the principle of equal job-equal pay’.”
Meanwhile, the other matter raised by the Labour Minister was the ability of workers to form unions, which the Constitution of Guyana allows.
“They have to facilitate the employees to be unionised if they want to be unionised; to join unions if they want to; or if they just want to have workers’ representative organisations within the company, so that their interests can be represented to the company,” Minister Hamilton noted.
He posited that rather than having all the workers meeting with the manager to address issues, it is more prudent to have one organisation meeting with management quarterly or monthly to address any unresolved matter; hence the need for unions.
The Labour Ministry is investigating the allegations and seeking ways to resolve the matter amicably.
Minister Hamilton noted that Wednesday’s meeting with Exxon was the first in a series of engagements he will be having with all the companies in the oil-and-gas sector in Guyana. (G8)