Just two days ahead of the September 11 leadership elections for the Ogem Workers’ Organization of Suriname (OWOS), the incumbent union board has launched a formal accusation against the management of Energie Bedrijven Suriname (EBS), the country’s state-owned energy utility, claiming the company has illegally interfered in the internal democratic process of the workers’ union. Incumbent OWOS president Marciano Hellings detailed the alleged interference during a press conference held at the union’s headquarters on September 9, outlining what he says has been a pattern of obstruction against his re-election campaign and favorable treatment for the opposing candidate slate, Team Bondru.
The road to the September 11 vote has already been marked by legal conflict, with multiple summary proceedings brought between EBS management, the incumbent OWOS board, and Team Bondru in the lead-up to the election date. After extended court proceedings, all parties ultimately reached an agreement to allow the vote to proceed as scheduled on September 11. The electoral process is being overseen by lawyers Guno Castelen and Glen van der San, who also sit on the independent election commission, with voting open to all registered union members across the country. In total, 1,009 EBS workers are eligible to cast ballots, and Hellings expressed confidence that a majority of voters will renew the incumbent board’s mandate.
This year’s leadership election coincides with ongoing negotiations for a new collective bargaining agreement between the union and EBS. Hellings emphasized that the outgoing board delivered tangible progress for workers during its first term, and that if re-elected, the group’s top priorities will be further improvements to base wages, secondary employment benefits, and workplace conditions. The central goal of these efforts, he noted, is to strengthen workers’ financial resilience to combat Suriname’s ongoing inflation and broader economic headwinds.
At the core of the conflict with EBS management is its unequal treatment of the two candidate slates, according to Hellings. He presented documentation to back up claims that EBS has repeatedly failed to honor existing agreements with the incumbent union, pointing to the long-delayed maintenance and repair of a union-owned vehicle that management previously committed to covering. In stark contrast, Hellings alleged that Team Bondru candidates have been given access to at least four company-owned vehicles to run their campaign across all regions of Suriname. He added that unlike Team Bondru’s presidential candidate, he has been blocked from entering EBS properties to meet with rank-and-file workers and introduce his platform.
Hellings further claimed that audio recordings exist showing senior EBS leaders openly favor the departure of the current OWOS board, and specifically his ouster as union president. The recordings also allegedly include suggestions to third parties that workers who vote to re-elect Hellings could face negative consequences for their employment. The content and origin of these recordings were not independently verified during the press conference. Hellings attributed the hostile relationship with EBS management to his board’s consistent, business-like critical stance in negotiations with the employer – a stance he said workers elected the board to take.
“The mandate our members gave us is clear: we will not cozy up to the employer, keep members distracted with empty stories and trivial concessions while our organization and its members fall into poverty,” Hellings said. “Our job is to be professional, hold firm, and win every possible benefit for our people. If workers no longer support this approach, they will make that clear at the ballot box. From what I have seen, that is not the case.”
The alleged interference by EBS leadership has already been reported to the Union of Assertive Trade Unions (UvAV), the national trade union federation that OWOS is affiliated with. According to Hellings, the federation has already publicly condemned outside interference in union internal elections. The OWOS board has also formally notified the EBS Board of Commissioners and Suriname’s Ministry of Labour about the situation. The union is also preparing to inform the Council of Trade Union Centres in Suriname (Ravaksur) and the International Labour Organization (ILO) of the alleged interference. Hellings did not rule out launching collective union action to push back against EBS if the situation is not resolved. “If this continues, we are prepared to launch industrial action to force management to stop interfering in the internal affairs of the workers’ union,” he said.