Over 100 “neglected” GPL workers conclude two-day protest

Union representatives of workers attached to the Guyana Power & Light Company (GPL) are demanding an urgent meeting with executive management of the company as they concluded a two-day protest outside the state-owned entity’s Main Street headquarters on Thursday. The impasse has stemmed from what has been described as untruthful disclosures from the Human Resources Department, to the effect that the unions had purportedly agreed to several measures. This contention was stressed by Chairman of the Guyana Public Service Union’s (GPSU’s) GPL branch, Walter George, who told the media that executive management has not favourably responded to the concerns of the senior management staff who joined their junior colleagues in the midday sunshine. Declaring that senior management is the link between the executive and the junior staff, George opined that senior management workers are being neglected. “The reason for us being out here is the neglect: uncaring, bad-faith arrangement; staying neutral and not being concerned,” he noted, speaking of senior management.

Noting that power is a vital resource, George stressed that the customer is paramount in GPL, suggesting that that is why more drastic measures have not been taken at this stage. “When you go home, you want to turn on the switch,” he said.
Guyana Times understands that negotiations first began in November 2017, but after executive management’s “unfavourable responses” the union decided that, going into 2018, it would set an ultimatum for the entity to meet at the bargaining table.
This newspaper was told there was, on December 29, 2017, a meeting wherein workers originally petitioned for 5% increases for all categories. It was explained that after preliminary negotiations, the union reduced this figure to 3 ½ percent.
The Chairman of the GPL-GPSU Branch, however, said the HR Director’s Office disclosed statements that were “contrary to the mutually agreed position”. “He wrote ‘negotiation for performance appraisal’, which was not negotiated at the table; he wrote about changing up the salary structure, which was not negotiated,” the press was informed. Echoing his sentiments, Principal Industrial Relations Officer of GPSU, Patricia Went, threatened that deadlock will be declared if the GPL executive does not concede to the workers’ demands. “We are asking to meet with them, because if there isn’t any solution, we will declare deadlock. There is a meeting (set for) April 10, but we are demanding an earlier date. (The situation) is unacceptable, and we are asking to meet as early as possible – Tuesday or Wednesday, but not week after next,” Went emphasised. She estimated that more than 80 junior managers and about 16 senior managers are affected by the impasse. Earlier this week, GPL’s executive managers told a Public Utilities Commission (PUC) hearing that in excess of $150 million in revenue has been lost via electricity theft. (Shemuel Fanfair)