Minimum wage for sugar workers increased to $100,000

…as Union, GuySuCo agree to 29.5% pay boost over 3 years

The Guyana Agricultural and General Workers Union (GAWU) and the Guyana Sugar Corporation Incorporated (GuySuCo) have finalised a transformative three-year Collective Labour Agreement (CLA) agreement signed on Wednesday paving the way forward in ensuring fair compensation and financial security for thousands of sugar workers across the country.

Effective January 1, 2024, the agreement provides a 10 per cent across-the-board salary increase for all sugar workers. This will be followed by an eight per cent rise in January 2025 and a further nine per cent in January 2026.
Additionally, the agreement guarantees a minimum wage of $100,000 per month for all sugar workers by January 1, 2025—bringing vital financial relief by ensuring every worker below this threshold receive additional increases.
According to GAWU’s President Seepaul Narine, negotiations spanned several weeks and addressed key worker demands beyond wages, including improved access to Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) and better allowances.
He explained that the agreement will channel $5 billion directly into the hands of sugar workers, reaffirming their central role in Guyana’s socio-economic fabric.
“This is the first time since GAWU became the bargaining agent for sugar workers in 1976 that a three-year agreement has been reached between the Union and the Corporation. Some five billion dollars ($5B) will reach the workers’ pockets through the agreement,” Narine said.
Highlighting challenges within the industry, the Union’s President called for a renewed commitment aimed at foster growth in the local sector and encouraged all workers and management personnel to elevate their efforts.
On this point, he also acknowledged President Dr Irfaan Ali’s insightful statement that sugar must be viewed as more than just a financial concern but as a vital contributor to our broader socio-economic landscape.
Meanwhile, GuySuCo’s Chief Executive, Paul Cheong praised the agreement as a bold step forward for the industry, stating “this milestone demonstrates our shared commitment to providing assurance to our workers and positioning the industry for growth,”.
Cheong also mentioned that efforts are ongoing to boost cane yields and modernize factory operations, expressing optimism about the future of Guyana’s sugar sector.
The Guyana Agricultural and General Workers’ Union (GAWU) is the largest trade union in Guyana. It was founded in 1946 as the Guiana Industrial Workers’ Union. After failing in the 1950s it was reformed as the Guyana Sugar Workers’ Union in 1961 but changed its name to Guyana Agricultural Workers’ Union in 1962 before becoming the GAWU later that decade.
The union was established to represent workers’ interests with a view to ensure their rights and benefits are respected and to also engage employers in collective bargaining to improve wages, benefits and conditions of work.
Meanwhile, earlier this year President Irfaan Ali had signalled that the government is working to find the right formula to improve wages for sugar workers while enhancing their skills.
Moreover, the People’s Progressive Party/Civic (PPP/C) Government has injected over $17 billion into the sugar industry and currently supporting close to 8000 workers.
Between 2016 and 2017, the A Partnership for National Unity/Alliance For Change (APNU/AFC) regime closed several estates across Guyana – an action that displaced more than 7000 sugar workers, who were not only without jobs but who had no means to support their families and contribute to their village as well as the national economy.
However, since assuming office in August 2020, the PPP/C Government has undertaken a slew of measures to revive the sugar sector and rehired hundreds of those dismissed workers.
The PPP/C had promised in its manifesto to revive sugar and reopen these estates. However, after the assets at Wales Estate were sold out by the APNU/AFC regime, the Government announced plans to establish a Development Authority, where several major industrial operations would be undertaken. Similarly, the Enmore Sugar Estate is also being transformed into an industrial area. (G1)