NAACIE rejects GPL’s 7% salary increase offer – General Secretary

…demands 10%; says union will not compromise

The National Association of Agricultural, Commercial, and Industrial Employees (NAACIE) on Friday met with the Guyana Power and Light Inc (GPL) Management team to discuss increased wages for workers.
In light of public servants including teachers and sugar workers receiving a 10 per cent across the board salary increase for this year, workers attached to GPL were expecting the same increase, the union said.
However, at the meeting on Friday, the company told NAACIE that they will be offering a seven per cent increase for workers hired under the company. This offer sparked outrage among workers who were expecting a 10 per cent across the board salary increase.
Speaking with the press after the meeting on Friday was the Union’s General Secretary, Dawchan Nagasar, who said that the power company and the union were engaged in discussion on salary hikes for workers earlier in September.
However, he noted that the power company said that it was low on financing which delayed pay increases for works. He explained that GPL was awaiting the pronouncement of the Government to award workers the 10 per cent salary increase.
“Initially, GPL said that they are awaiting the pronouncement of the Government, which was done on Tuesday. We came to the meeting hoping that we would agree to the 10 per cent that was announced to the Government, but that is not to be. The Government pronounced a 10 per cent increase for 2024, eight per cent increase for 2025, also with some in-scale movements, additional increases. We at are willing to accept a 10 per cent increase for 2024 across the board. However, GPL is saying seven per cent across the board.”
The NAACIE’s General Secretary said the power company has highlighted that earlier this year, some workers received a three per cent salary increase, and therefore they only need an added seven per cent to take the total amount of increases for this year to 10 per cent.
Nagasar said the three per cent increase that was given to some workers this year was not across the board, and therefore many workers were left without that increase.
“The GPL is claiming that there is a three per cent automatic increment that was paid in January. That is an in-scale movement. That has nothing to do with a crisis reward. The President also announced in-scale movements for public sectors. That has nothing to do with a crisis reward.”
He added “Our understanding is that the Government will provide the money for the 10 per cent. So even if they have other reasons, the point is the Government is giving you the money to pay the 10 per cent.”
In this regard the General Secretary noted that workers are not willing to compromise and accept the seven per cent pay hike. He noted that the union will take the necessary actions to ensure that workers receive a 10 per cent pay increase just like all other public servants.
“They are not going to back down and accept the seven per cent. They are demanding that they get the 10 per cent and they will go all lengths out to do it. Whatever action we need to take after this, the workers will do that.”
Whilst no deadline was given for GPL to award workers with their salary increase, the General Secretary told the media that the union will deicide what steps will be taken next. In the interim, Nagasar called for the Government to chime in on the matter.
“When we break from here, then we will decide the next move forward. But in the meantime, we would like the authorities, which is the Government, the president, the Vice President, to intervene and ensure that we get the 10 per cent that they offered to the people of Guyana.”
Additionally, the General Secretary told the media that the Union is currently discussing other finical benefits such as performance appraisal.
“Okay, meal allowance, which they increased by $100 to $1,700, right? We haven’t totally agreed on this, but there is also the performance appraisal, which we haven’t been finalised for the past couple of years, two, three years.”