On the eve of a meeting with Guyana’s Chief Labour Officer, the Russian-owned Bauxite Company of Guyana Inc (BCGI) has laid off nearly all of its employees, a move that has left the Minister of Natural Resources Raphael Trotman shocked.
The company yesterday notified workers of their employment status by way of letter on its notice board outside the company’s premises, which listed some 146 persons along with their job identification numbers. “That is nearly all if not all of us,” an employee told the Stabroek News via phone last evening.
“We wish to advise that we are forced to further reduce operations and to lay off employees due to adverse operating circumstances including shipment interruption due to the blockage of the Berbice River. Unfortunately, the employees listed below are affected by the reduction and have to be (laid) off effective the 30th January 2020 and to be recalled as soon as the situation returns to normal,” the correspondence said while informing that individual letters would be sent via post to the homes of the employees.