BOSAI, NAACIE sign MoU for 7% increase

BOSAI Minerals Group (Guyana), Inc and the National Association of Agricultural Commercial and Industrial Employees (NAACIE), on Thursday, signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) between the company and the Ministry of Labour, which will see workers benefiting from a seven percent increase in wages and salary for the period of April 1, 2021, to March 31, 2022, and April 1, 2022, to December 31, 2022. The workers will receive a retroactive payment of seven percent in December for the period April 1, 2021, to December 31, 2021.

This signing of the MoU occurred about three weeks after workers downed tools in protest against the company’s decision to pay a 5.5 percent increase. They were calling for eight percent at the time. However, following continuous negotiation, a decision was made to pay seven percent.   In addition, the workers are expected to receive other benefits for the periods mentioned.

“It comes after several conciliation sessions that were steered by the Chief Labour Officer, Dhaneshwar Deonarine, in a bid to bring both parties to an amicable resolution,” a statement from the Ministry of Labour said.

Representing BOSAI at Thursday’s signing were General Manager, Eric Yu; Mr. George Zhou; Human Resources Manager, Truedel Marks; Chief Engineer, Orin Barnwell; and Chief Security Officer, John Domer.

The Union was represented by its General Secretary, Karren Mapp; President Bernard Crawford; and Junior Vice-President Whitney Graham.

The statement said the The Ministry of Labour swiftly began engaging the Union and the company following the strike action, with the first meeting being held on October 22, and a Terms of Resumption (TOR) agreement being signed to pave the way for the workers’ immediate return to work.

The TOR included a requirement that there be no victimisation by either party, and that the status quo shall remain.