Hundreds of Wales, West Bank Demerara cane cutters continue to register their frustration against the Guyana Sugar Corporation’s (GuySuCo) non-payment of severance and have once again picketed the estate, this time calling for the intervention of President David Granger and his Cabinet members. Monday’s protest is just one of several planned for this week as the workers continue their appeal for their severance packages.
Enough is enough: Wales Sugar workers who gathered on Monday morning were promised their severance payments since late December 2016
On Monday, the workers noted that the Head of State and Prime Minister Moses Nagamootoo had committed their support to the sugar industry in the run-up to the 2015 General and Regional Elections. The workers once again complained that Agriculture Minister Noel Holder never met with them at the estate to address their concerns.
“No Minister never come and meet with we as yet, onto now,” the workers collectively expressed.
“The industry a bully we; but they want we to work but we [don’t want to work at Uitvlugt], we want money. We want the Agriculture Minister and Moses Nagamootoo, we want Granger – all ah dem to intervene in this matter,” Neil Mosely explained, an estate employee who had 25 years of service in the industry.
“I would like the President to look into the sugar workers. We are the hardest working class of people… they in seat and they never look into the sugar workers and say they don’t have money – shame to de Government [for saying] they don’t have money to pay couple sugar workers,” exclaimed Titus Thomas, who said he served the industry for well over 30 years.
He further explained that he sees the sugar industry “heading nowhere”, explaining, “They take we for remote for TV that when they programme we that is there we must leff,” he related.
The Agriculture Ministry, however, is contending that all workers who wanted severance payment were already paid but the Guyana Agricultural and General Workers (GAWU) had deemed the Ministry’s announcement as misleading. The workers are holding out that they must be paid.
“Since the second week in December, we nah work nowhere, and we nah get no money. We deserve we money now,” shouted a protester. Another claimed that several cane cutters were told by operatives at the Uitvlugt Estate that there is no work available.
The workers are demanding that they be paid severance on the basis that they cannot be compelled to travel 22 miles from their point of origin. Guyana Times was recently informed that at last week Thursday’s meeting with the Sugar Corporation, employees and Union representatives, GuySuCo reportedly maintained that the workers “have to go” to the Uitvlugt Estate. The Corporation had told the public that the Uitvlugt Estate was being upgraded to increase its production from 20,000 to 40,000 tonnes of sugar annually. On that basis, GuySuCo had reiterated its demand for labour.
Government confirmed the end of sugar operations at Wales Estate, citing cost as the main factor for closure. The workers will continue their protest throughout this week.
