Employers can be fined, jailed for not granting staff time off to vote

Employers can be fined $32,500 or face imprisonment for six months if they fail to give staff time off to vote on Elections Day.

The Guyana Elections Commission (GECOM) in a notice in Tuesday’s edition of the Stabroek News pointed out that in accordance with Section 81 of the Representation of the People Act, Chapter 1:03, “every employer shall permit every elector in his employ, other than those who would be voting by proxy, to be absent from work on Elections Day for reasonable time.”

GECOM specified that this does not include the normal midday meal hour and no employer should make any deduction from pay or other remuneration of any such elector.

The employer is not permitted to impose any penalty for time absent either.

The elections commission pointed to the Representation of the People Act which states that an employer who directly or indirectly, refuses or by intimidation interferes with the granting of time off for citizens to vote, shall on the summary conviction be liable to a fine of $32,500 or imprisonment for six months.

General and regional elections is set for March 02, 2020.