With the closure of the Wales estate last December many lives have been disrupted, including those of the cane-cutters and cane transporters who are desperately trying to figure out their next source of income.
But as desperate as they are, they are not willing to take up the Guyana Sugar Corporation’s (GuySuCo) offer to work at the Uitvlugt estate and are still determined to be paid their severance benefits.
Eion Fernandes is one such worker. He told Stabroek News: “Right now I don’t know what they [GuySuCo] have us on. I don’t want to go to Uitvlugt to work. The (law) says that if you exceed 10 miles they have to pay us off.”
He was referring to the Termination of Employment and Severance Pay Act, which says that when the workers become