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So, while that’s a summary of the perspectives of the two sides of this good governance dispute, what are their positions on the labour dispute?

As you will remember, there were a number of labour-related concerns in the BNTU’s list of 8 demands to the Prime Minister. We have outlined the good governance fixes, so now tonight, we have the Prime Minister’s plan of action responding to the demands that the BNTU had for better working relations. Here are the comments from the Prime Minister, followed by the counterarguments made by the Union’s President:

Luke Palacio - National President - BNTU
"We had ask for the removal of the minister of police Senator Hulse. At that meeting the prime minister had indicated to us that if indeed as an outcome of the investigation into the auditor general's special report that if a police investigation needed to be done, he would be prepared to revisit that particular demand. Today he had adamantly said that he's not going to remove Senator Hulse as minister of police despite what has happened."

Rt. Hon. Dean Barrow - Prime Minister
"On the question of the removal of Senator Godwin Hulse, I was quite clear that government cannot will not accede to that. I made the point that really in my view based on the judgement of Chief Justice Conte with respect to the 2005 strike that is not a demand that legitimately constitute part of a properly described labour dispute."

Luke Palacio - National President - BNTU
"The prime minister I believe in his usual way had been able to address some of the good governance issue that we've raised but remember there are also the issue to do with labour relations that we have not satisfactorily gotten an agreement on. Those include the social security coverage to and from work."

Rt. Hon. Dean Barrow - Prime Minister
"Amendment to the social security act includes the coverage to and from work. I made clear that as I've said before government believes that there is justice in the case being made by the BNTU and by others; this is something the joint unions had raised with government some time ago - the NTUCB is very much interested in and so I believe that it is something that government will do. I've had some feedback from the chairman of the social security board as to some safe guards the board would like to see put in place before we actually amend the legislation to provide for this. So I could not give the BNTU any sell by date, I could not say this will be done, the law will be changed by such and such a date."

Luke Palacio - National President - BNTU
"In relation to the social security issue for instance to and from work we continue to insist that it is a labour issue. It is not only teachers, it is not only person who get paid from government but even person who are employed in the private sector travel to and from work transportation not provided for by their employers. We believe that labour relation issue could have been a gesture if indeed and I even stressed that if you are looking after your workers that is a part of good governance. Of course the prime minister differed with that. So again at that point he had indicated that if we had kept the classrooms open or if we had promised to keep the classrooms open he would have considered and would have signed a SI to amend the social security act for coverage to and from work. Today now he has again gone back on this word and have decided that will not happen. So those are examples where we have come out worse than we went in at the last meeting."

Rt. Hon. Dean Barrow - Prime Minister
"BNTU special proposal 22 again that is not something I can deal with. I made clear that was a matter was part of the collective bargaining agreement process between government and the joint unions negotiation team. That is the BNTU, APSSM, and the PSU."

Luke Palacio - National President - BNTU
"Proposal 22 of the BNTU speaks of proper compensation for our teachers, support staff at secondary schools. Those we believe are labour related issues that must be addressed adequately for the membership of BNTU and the wider teaching population."

Rt. Hon. Dean Barrow - Prime Minister
"Another meeting of the parties or government and the joint unions negotiating team will be convened to look at in fact closing off current CBA round which we thought has been done but BNTU saying it has not been done. So that mechanic will be reconvened to look at closing off the CBA and in the course of discussing that closure there will naturally have to discuss as well the special proposal 22. So it’s not something that I can or am prepared to handle that must be sent back to this framework involving the joint unions negotiating team."