Workers of the Guyana Geology and Mines Commission (GGMC) have called off their strike action after three weeks on the picket line. The decision comes following an agreement between the Guyana Public Service Union and the management of the GGMC over a number of the demands that were put forward by the workers.

The agreement was reached during a meeting with the Chief Labour Officer on Tuesday.

In an interview with News Source, the GPSU’s Senior Industrial Officer Dennis English said that the union was able to get the GGMC to agree to a one-off payment of one and a half month’s salary as increases for 2013 and negotiations will now begin within the next 72 hours for the 2014 increases. He said he is confident that those increases will go well.

The GGMC workers launched strike action from the beginning of January to press for the promised increases. Many of them complained that the GGMC would make promises but would never stick to those promises when it was time to pay.

The strike action affected GGMC operations across the country especially in the interior region where the mining officers would be posted to monitor mining operations.

In the past, management at the GGMC has said that they have caved to a number of other demands and are offering the workers better allowance packages.

The Ministry of Labour became involved in the issue and deemed the strike action illegal as it expressed concerns about the workers being on strike even while efforts were being made to deal with their grievances.  The workers brushed aside the Labour Ministry’s concerns and continued with their strike action.

Filed: 27th January, 2015

Related posts:

Guyana Goldfields workers end strike; Company to meet with Govt. and Union officials Over 60 Rusal Bauxite workers facing dismissal over strike action; Chief Labour Officer to intervene Labour Ministry blasts GGMC workers over “illegal” strike action GGMC workers strike over pay dispute