Dozens of tillage workers and planters at the Guyana Sugar Corporation’s (GuySuCo) Wales estate will be out of work immediately following the decision by government to close the West Demerara estate.
Stabroek News was told that the 73 tillage employees and 110 from the planting division were told by GuySuCo that they would have to wait until October before the state-owned corporation could provide answers in relation to their employment.
Speaking to Stabroek News after meeting with GuySuCo’s Chief Industrial Relations Officer Deodat Sukhu on Wednesday, a delegation from the unions representing sugar workers, GAWU and NAACIE, expressed anger and frustration that the 183 workers are effectively out of a job.
“We were not informed by none staff that any closure would be taking place and anything would have happened. The previous Thursday, they bring in all the machine while they were in operation, they bring in all the machines and said park them in the compound and then on Friday, they took the machine all the machine to Uitvlugt, they say take all the machine to Uitvlugt,” one man related.
Government on Monday announced that the Wales Sugar Estate is to be closed by yearend, the first major decision it has taken on the troubled industry.
“It’s only after they said that mechanical tillage operation would totally shut down, the planting operation would be totally shut down…we asked what is going to happen to us. Now wholly and solely when we came here to understand, they criticize the media saying that don’t worry with them, they talking lie. Now they invite us to the meeting and we understand that there is no tillage, no planting and now we are out of a job. We ask them what we do for now, they say come back October 1, first they would come with a plan, they have a diverse plan and all these plans but nothing properly,” the man said.
According to the delegation, the promised take up of workers by the Uitvlugt estate is unlikely as during the meeting, it was explained that Uitvlugt would only accept workers based on vacancies.
Asked by Stabroek News if any of those present would be willing to relocate to Uitvlugt for work, there was a resounding “no” from the small crowd gathered at the head of the Railway Embankment Road.
“I am begging the president to intervene and reverse this thing,” one worker said. Another expressed his lack of confidence in GuySuCo saying that the corporation had “no definite answer, they said wait until second crop finish…we have no alternative.”
According to the workers, they are willing to engage all stakeholders. “We willing to engage with the government, the opposition, the cane farmers and all the trade unions because all of us are brothers and sisters in sugar. We want to meet with the government officials, let us sit down and see a way forward for Wales because we strongly believe we pass through hard times before and we think we can go forward…but we need discussions, don’t go in the media and say this is what we are going to do and there is no plan behind it,” one asserted.
The workers expressed their anxieties that the crime rate and suicide rates will skyrocket without the estate, saying that many peoples’ livelihood depend on sugar either directly or indirectly.
Head of the Guyana Agricultural and General Workers’ Union (GAWU) Komal Chand told Stabroek News that the meeting held at La Bonne Intention was disappointing. Chand said upon meeting with GuySuCo’s team which included former Human Resources Director and current Board Member Earl John, the GuySuCo team said that they were not aware of any statement issued by the government announcing the closure of Wales.
The head of GAWU then pointed out that the statement on Monday announcing this decision was sent out by the Agriculture Ministry.
Chand said the union was made to understand that in October, GuySuCo would be heading into a new venture at Wales and asked if the corporation will retain ownership and management, the officials provided no answers.
He said the corporation was told that “you haven’t got a clear cut plan after you close yet. How many workers you’re going to absorb, who are going to be running this venture, is it GuySuCo? Who others? They [said] nothing but they will have to come back to us on that,” Chand related.
The GAWU head disclosed that the unions and GuySuCo were scheduled to have a meeting last week but it was cancelled. He said that GAWU asked specifically when the decision was made to close Wales and why there was no word and again, no answers could be provided.
Meantime, GAWU in a press statement said that Skeldon workers are being overworked and underpaid during the current out-of-crop season.
According to GAWU, “the Corporation is merely satisfying its obligations to provide the mandatory out-of-crop work and this explains the reason for the underpaying and overtasking and the take-it or leave-it attitude.”
The union said that since many of the workers’ daily earning potential has been reduced to as little as $1,060, workers have decided to engage in protest action outside of Skeldon Administrative Offices. The union said that under the Collective Labour Agreement, workers are not to earn less than $2,666 per day.
According to the statement, unlike in the past, the estate management refuses to negotiate prices for tasks. It said that GuySuCo also informed the union that it would be unable to engage in discussions with the union through its Industrial Relations Department until yesterday.
