UCASE says security guards at US Embassy restive
KINGSTON, Jamaica – Wage and fringe benefits negotiations between the Union of Clerical, Administrative and Supervisory Employees (UCASE) and the G4S Guardsman joint venture, which commenced in July, have reached a stalemate.
President of UCASE, Vincent Morrison, told Observer Online on Sunday that having won bargaining rights for and on behalf of over 210 security officers assigned to the US Embassy in Kingston, they have reached the stalemate in their relatively new level of negotiating.
He said that, consequently, the security officers are extremely restive and UCASE, through the union, has informed the company that the restiveness among the security officers could develop into industrial action, “if the company continues to remain intransigent in the negotiating process”.
He said that the union has made its position “patently clear”, that the paltry offer of a 10 per cent increase in year one of the offer and zero increase in the second year, followed by five per cent in the third, fourth and fifth year of the contract, is not only inadequate, but is unsatisfactory to the employees.
According to Morrison, the union had asserted, during the negotiations, that the company can do much better for the employees, taking into consideration that the contract it has with the joint venture partners.
“The union is also lamenting the fact that after eight meetings, the company is not serious about having an amicable settlement, to enable the workers to benefit and to assist themselves and their families in overcoming the present inflationary difficulties they are experiencing.
He added, however, that the union stands ready, at short notice, to meet with the company to continue the wage and fringe benefits negotiations which commenced in July.
G4S is part of Allied Universal, a leading security and facility services company, that provides proactive security services and cutting-edge smart technology to deliver tailored, integrated security solutions that allow clients to focus on their core business.
The company says that through a global workforce of approximately 800,000 people, it leverages best practices in communities all over the world.
“With revenues at approximately $20 billion, we are supported by efficient processes and systems that can only come with scale to help deliver our promise locally: keeping people safe so our communities can thrive,” the company stated.
