The Guyana Agricultural and General Workers Union (GAWU) and the National Association of Agricultural, Commercial and Industrial Employees (NAACIE) today (October 29) at a meeting with GuySuCo Chief Executive, Dr Harold Davis (junior), and Finance and Marketing Director, Mr Paul Bhim, among other officials, of the Corporation, continued their struggle as they pressed, demanded and called on the sugar company to approve a pay rise to sugar workers this year. The Unions delegation which aggregately numbered some 30 workers and union officials attached to their clothing small placards highlighting the need for the Corporation to grant a wage/salary increase to sugar workers. The delegations slogans were as follows:-
- Workers key to success –END WAGE FREEZE!
- End discrimination –PAY RISE NOW!
- GuySuCo wage freeze impoverishing workers
- Workers are sugar’s golden goose – Grant pay rise!
- 2014 wages with 2019 prices –Can’t work!
- 1800+ days of wage freeze –Shameful!
- GuySuCo minimum pay = $42,400 per month, Govt minimum pay = $64,200 per month – A downright shame!
The meeting begun with a presentation by the Corporation’s Finance and Marketing Director and during the course of interaction, the Unions delegation donned their placards. The Corporation, almost immediately, objected contending that our placards were not allowed on the Company’s premises. Both the GAWU and the NAACIE pointed out that our respective delegations were not disruptive to the meeting. In fact our delegations remained present in their seats listening attentively to the presentation. At no time, were the GuySuCo team prevented from speaking. The Corporation nevertheless insisted that we abandon our placards. Our Unions, on principled grounds, refused to put away our slogans. We contended that we were merely expressing our views which are not different from what we have shared in the past with the Corporation and publicly as well. We also pointed out that our actions were not in violation of any industrial relations tenet as we maintained our stance.
Moreover, we pointed out to GuySuCo that the Freedom of Expression was a sacred and highly-held constitutional right and one it should not seek to undermine. It did not escape our attention that, in recent times, in other arenas of our nation, we have seen concerted attempts to shutdown our expressions by our people. It appeared to us that the Corporation was joining the bandwagon as it sought to quell our Unions expressions.
The demand by the Corporation to put away of slogans, we felt, was an inconsiderate and a unreasonable request. It is disheartening for us to recognize that a state-owned Company is seeking to apparently muzzle the expressions of its workers. We prevailed on the Corporation for better sense to prevail and for the meeting to continue. GuySuCo, nevertheless, decided to disregard our sincere and valid contentions and went on to abandon the meeting. Our Unions, as concerned stakeholders, were eager to engage the Corporation on its plan and cancellation of the meeting, by the state-owned company, was an unfortunate development.
As it is now a well-known, and an ignominious, fact sugar workers’ pay has
remain unchanged since 2014. During the now more than 1,800 days that have gone
by, the cost-of-living has risen significantly. Official statistics has
confirmed that the cost of food for instance has risen by 17 per cent with
several staple food items going up in excess of 20 per cent. At the same time,
workers have confronted several other increases through the imposition of taxes
and hiking of tariff fees. Just a few days ago, the second tranche of water
rate increases were implemented hiking the cost of water by some 200 per cent.
Workers and their families also have had to bitterly swallow the increased cost
of public transportation, the withdrawal of important and helpful Government
support, among other things.
During the period, as well, several long-standing conditions-of-work enjoyed by sugar workers have simply been ignored by the now-a-day Management of GuySuCo. The confluence of a pay freeze and suspension of other benefits have hit workers and their families hard as their take home pay has fallen greatly since 2014. Our Unions have sought from the Corporation a disaggregation of the industry’s employment cost over the last few years. The information, we believe, will be useful to demonstrate the gravamen and seriousness of the situation that the workers face. Dismayingly, the Corporation has not acceded to our requests though similar information was shared in the past.
Our Unions will continue to advance our demands in the coming times regarding a pay rise to workers. The continued denial of wage/salary increases will not be helpful to the industry. Already workers spirits are daunted and while they continue they seek to give their best, the situation has greatly impacted their commitment.
