The Guyana Agricultural and General Workers Union Co-operative Credit Union Society Limited today advised its members across the sugar industry that it has requested the Guyana Sugar Corporation Inc (GuySuCo) to cease deductions from workers’ earnings, Credit Union savings with effect from week-ending May 30, 2015.
The Society says its regrettable, but unavoidable decision has been prompted by GuySuCo not remitting workers’ savings to the Credit Union contrary to the extant Agreement between the Credit Union and the Corporation.
“As at the end of April, 2015, the Corporation failed to provide a huge sum of one hundred and fifty-four million, four hundred and ten thousand, five hundred and twenty-five dollars ($154,410,525) which represents workers’ savings for five (5) months. GuySuCo promised to the Credit Union some payments not later than the third week of this month (May, 2015) but same did not materialize”, the Credit Union said in a statement.
It added that it is now unable to continue to facilitate savers’ withdrawals in the light of the non-payment of the workers’ savings by the Corporation in accordance with the prevailing Agreement. Additionally, the Credit Union said it has taken consideration of the fact that it is now unable to secure further loans to enable savers’ withdrawals.
“The sad decision, if it is not urgently redressed by the Corporation will cause the jobs of the Credit Union’s employees to be in jeopardy.
“The Credit Union, therefore, looks forward to receiving as early as possible from the Corporation the workers’ outstanding savings so that its dependable services to thousands of sugar workers would resume as early as possible”, the Credit Union said.
Today’s action, observers say exemplifies how severe GuySuCo’s financial problems have been over the last few years and which problems were played down by the former PPP/C government. GuySuCo had also owed a substantial amount in remittances to the National Insurance Scheme.
