Employees attached to bauxite company – Bosai Minerals Group Guyana Inc. – will receive a two-year retroactive salary increase following the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between the company and the National Association of Agricultural Commercial and Industrial Employees (NAACIE) at the Ministry of Labour on Thursday.
According to a release from the ministry, the MoU outlines clear terms which will see the employees receiving wages and salary increases along with other benefits for the periods April 1, 2021, to March 31, 2022, and April 1, 2022, to December 31, 2022.
The percentage of the increase was not revealed by the ministry. Meanwhile, a Terms of Resumption agreement was also signed between the two parties which saw the employees calling off the strike and returning to work on October 23, 2021.
The amicable resolution was said to be steered by the Chief Labour Officer (CLO), Dhaneshwar Deonarine during a meeting back on October 22; this was after the widely publicized strike action by the employees on October 21.
At the meeting, BOSAI representatives included General Managers Eric Yu and George Zhou ag.; Human Resources Manager Truedel Marks; Chief Engineer and Consultant Orin Barnwell and Chief Security Officer John Domer.
The union was represented by General Secretary (ag). Karren Mapp; General President (ag). Bernard Crawford and Junior Vice President Whitney Graham.
The workers had downed their tools over the proposed across the board salary increases, many stating that the offering of a 5.5 per cent increase is unsatisfactory and demanded increases between 7-10 per cent.
The employees had protested for hours, refusing to return to work unless their demands are met. Workers claimed that management had made a decision not to alter the present offer, claiming that the COVID-19 pandemic led to a decrease in production.
However, the employees stressed that they continued to work even during the pandemic hence why they are deserving of a bigger increase.
