GTU asks High Court to block cut in salaries of striking teachers; continue union dues deduction

Last Updated on Wednesday, 14 February 2024, 18:38 by Denis Chabrol

The Guyana Teachers’ Union (GTU) has asked the High Court to prohibit government from slashing the salaries of striking teachers and to continue the deduction of membership dues and remittance to their bargaining agent.

“Conservatory order that the status quo will remain the same, that is the Government of Guyana will not deduct the monies from the wages and salaries of teachers engaged in any industrial action until the determination of the matter,” states the Notice of Application for the order filed by GTU President Mark Lyte through Attorney-at-Law Darren Wade.

Dr Lyte on Tuesday had estimated that up to 6,000 teachers could take home less salaries in March for days on strike.

“Threatening to deduct monies from the wages and salaries of teachers engaged in any industrial action shows bad faith, improper purposes, and irrelevant considerations on the part of the Government of Guyana.

Further, the GTU says the effect of the Government’s threats to deduct wages from the salaries of teachers will cause undue hardship on teachers battling with already small salaries against the constantly increasing cost of living.

The union tells the High Court that should the Government make good on its threats it will breach, encroach, and infringe on the rights of the Applicant to protection from deprivation of property contrary to section 142 (1) of the Laws of Guyana Cap 1:01. To do so, the GTU also says, without giving them a right to be heard it will constitute a violation of their rights to natural justice, right to be heard.

Deduction of  monies from striking teachers, the GTU says, violates freedom of association and assembly contrary to section 147 (1) of the Laws of Guyana Cap 1:01; breaches, encroaches, and infringes on the rights of the Applicant to protection from discrimination contrary to section 149 (1) of the Laws of Guyana Cap 1:01.

Dr Lyte also wants the High Court to grant a conservatory order to prohibit the Guyana government from stopping the check-off system of union dues from the salaries of teachers “engaged in any industrial action until the determination of the matter.”

No date has been set for the hearing of the request for a conservatory order, but the substantive case against the deduction of union dues is set for April 3, 2024.

While the union has publicly stated that it would be using GTT’s Mobile Money Guyana (MMG) and bank transfers to collect union dues, in the court documents, it contends that it is “unable to make effective alternative arrangements to receive its dues as a result of the Applicant not giving adequate notice.”

“Furthermore, the sudden decision leaves the Union scrambling to establish alternative dues collection methods, facing logistical hurdles, and a lack of time to adequately inform its members and implement new systems,” the GTU said in its court papers.

The GTU has filed High Court proceedings to quash the Ministry of Education’s decision of February 6, 2023 to stop the deduction and remittance of membership dues because of the now eight-day old “unlawful and politicised” strike. The industrial action is aimed at forcing government to negotiate increased salaries.

According to court documents seen by Demerara Waves Online News, the GTU is asking for a conservatory order for government to continue the deduction of membership dues. If that request fails, the GTU hopes that instead the High Court will issue an order directing government to deduct the membership dues and send them to the union.

GTU said among the grounds for applying for the conservatory order as well as, in the substantive case against the scrapping of the automatic check-off system, is that it was not given a right to be heard at any level to answer to the allegations of racism, cyber-bullying, and threatening behaviour made in the Ministry of Education’s Permanent Secretary’s letter dated February 6, 2023.

As a result, the GTU said its “natural justice was impinged and infringed by the State of the Cooperative Guyana, and that the financial operations of that bargaining agent would be severely affected. “The effect of such an action will be to deprive the Guyana Teachers’ Union of the funds necessary for the fulfillment of its duty towards the teachers of Guyana” and “this action would cripple the Guyana Teachers’ Union, severely hindering its ability to provide essential services to its members. Without these funds, the Union cannot effectively advocate for teachers’ rights.”

In addition to the decision being “vindictive, spiteful, unreasonable, and arbitrary”, the GTU said in the court papers that government’s decision to cease functioning as the union’s agent to deduct union dues from wages and salaries of teachers is “unreasonable, arbitrary, and capricious.”