President Bharrat Jagdeo said yesterday that a new strategy for the slumping sugar industry here hinges on the support of the workers in the fields, citing poor attendance as one of the more visible problems affecting critical recovery.
The issue of mismanagement in the sector over the years and questions about the Skeldon factory are to be addressed Jagdeo said, but he equated more solid commitment from workers in the industry with progress.
The head of state’s comments came as he addressed the opening session of the 19th Delegate’s Congress of the Guyana Agricultural & General Workers Union (GAWU) where he argued firmly for workers to recognize how critical their continued involvement is.
“We need people to cut the cane when it is in the ground… everyone needs to pull their weight, [the industry] had a rough patch but things will get better,” Jagdeo said.
GAWU President Komal Chand spoke before the President and he singled out mismanagement by the previous Booker Tate management at GuySuCo as a major factor in the industry’s current decline. He said too that the delay in the start-up of the Skeldon factory contributed to the poor production output last year.
Chand said that worker’s continued to struggle for better wages and improved working conditions, adding that the pension is “a pittance.” He said too that the issue of regular employment needs to be addressed as workers in the industry grapple with a myriad challenges.
Further he noted that significant government support is needed to lift the industry from its current slump. Chand argued that sugar remains the mainstay of the economy and forcefully questioned what is there to replace it should the industry crumble.
The President took to the podium immediately after Chand and he declared that the administration has made the largest investment “ever in the sugar industry” by pumping US$200M into the Skeldon modernization project to build a modern factory. This, he said, represents a commitment, which “stands out in the face of investment in sugar” drying up in some Caribbean countries.
“Some people have decided not to continue with the sector but we have, government has committed to the Skeldon factory and also the packaging plant at Enmore,” Jagdeo stated.
Jagdeo said that the reality of local sugar must be understood in the context of a sharp price cut from the EU and less focus on mismanagement. He noted that management has changed at GuySuCo, adding that “it’s not about management,” but rather the workers.
The President declared also that he is prepared to say give GAWU the industry and offer the workers a chance to “reap the benefits and invest in the industry” minus government support. But he countered that the union would never agree because the industry is making a huge loss.
He urged workers to be reasonable and to work towards upping production to over 300,000 tonnes. He said too that the Skeldon factory must be allowed to operate at 95 per cent and not 78 per cent, adding that cane cultivation needs to increase.
Additionally, he said that while the administration will always defend the workers’ right to strike there is a procedure to follow. Jagdeo said that he is asking that the people who “lead these wild strikes” go through the grievance procedure which the union signed with the company.
GAWU’s congress is being held under the theme, ‘Advancing social development through greater workers’ democracy.’ The union said that it is meeting at a time when sugar here and globally is in trouble and as the global economic downturn is impacting heavily on developing countries. The congress wraps up on Tuesday.
