It is the view of the Guyana Trades Union Congress (GTUC) that 2014 was a year where workers from various sectors in Guyana continued to “catch hell.”General Secretary of GTUC, Lincoln LewisAnalysing the labour situation in Guyana, the GTUC noted that many are “unemployed,Bruno Zuculini Manchester City Jersey, underemployed and the employed are made to feel they are being granted a favour by the employers and not appreciated as the most vital resource in the workplace.”The GTUC, who conducted a labour review of 2014, is of the belief that these failing conditions are a result of the government’s refusal to put systems in place to create the enabling environment where the worker is valued as the nation’s premium resource.“Our industrial climate is such where some Guyanese are denied every right under the Laws with the Government not only being a major player but also a protector of foreign businesses engaging in these malpractices.”“Patriotism and nationhood,” the GTUC said, “are thrown through the window as the nation continues to witness Trade Unionists, Politicians, Lawyers and Industrial Relations Consultants engage in an orgy of transgressing rights and violating laws in return for money.”The GTUC is of the firm belief that ruthlessness has wormed itself into professional sectors once held in high esteem, and the role of the Labour Minister, Dr. Nanda Gopaul did not escape their focus.“The Minister of Labour,Tyler Blackett Jersey, a former Trade Unionist, who would have struggled for better conditions and wages for workers, has today shamelessly strayed from these beliefs, and is now part of a political environment that disregards the value of workers.”“He functions with apparent ease and comfort under a government that disregards workers’ rights protected in ILO (International Labour Organisation) Core Labour Standards. The Minister now appears comfortable with these anti-working class policies that undervalue his legacy as a trade unionist.”According to the umbrella union body, last year the society continued to be plagued by poor governance, a hallmark of successive PPP administrations.Further, the trade union federation noted that the absence of a comprehensive Job Creation Policy, anchored in a National Development Plan that takes into consideration population growth and workplace development, continues to be a feature of the government.“Persons having completed studies are having difficulties securing gainful employment consistent with ILO Core Labour Standards, which the Government of Guyana has embraced,” the body said.The industrial relations climate continues to be troubling, GTUC expressed. “Collective Bargaining for some workers is treated with contempt by employers, with the major violator being the government.”The trade union federation divulged that for the twelfth?year the government refuses to engage in good faith negotiations with unions in the Public Service.The GPSU, the largest union in the Public Service, also found itself undermined by contract workers.“Whilst the intent may have been to break the back of the union,Matthias Ginter Dortmund Shirts, workers are compromised, for even though they may receive higher wages, they lose benefits, safety and security of organised labour and place themselves at the mercies of an exploitative regime.”Focusing on the Bauxite Company of Guyana Incorporated (BCGI), GTUC said that for the fifth year workers are being denied the right to representation by the legally recognised union, the Guyana Bauxite and General Workers Union (GB&GWU).“This violation,” the GTUC said, “is aided and abetted by the Minister of Labour Nanda Gopaul, with his refusal to honour the government’s commitment to the court in July 2012 to reissue letters for the commencement of arbitration between the union and company.”It said that denial of bauxite workers is tantamount to affecting the communities of Region 10 which have largely been sustained by bauxite.In the case of BCGI, Mohamed Akeel, former Chief Labour Officer is its Industrial Relations Advisor and Carvil Duncan, General Secretary of GLU, Chairman FITUG and PSC, is the Chairman of LEI Board of Directors.GTUC said “Duncan and Akeel, by their actions, continue to prove that they have assumed the role of riding shotgun for employers to trample workers and violate the laws. These men enjoy the favours of the PPP government and are rewarded for undermining workers’ rights.”At the Revenue Authority, GTUC said that the management refuses to engage the GPSU, a case that has been ongoing for years, in as much as the Trades Union Recognition & Certification Board pronounced in the union’s favour.“Another group