…as GAWU reveals GuySuCo cannot pay workers until 2018
…PPP demands immediate severance payments for workers
By Jarryl Bryan
With thousands of sugar workers out of work and facing financial hardships, Opposition Leader Bharrat Jagdeo is demanding that they receive their rightful severance payments immediately.
Jagdeo voiced this demand at a press conference on Thursday, during which he maintained he had little faith on the Government reversing its decision to close
Opposition Leader Bharrat Jagdeo
sugar estates. He stressed, however, that the workers were entitled to their severance payment by law and revealed that many of those who were already paid felt cheated.
“I pointed out, even when I spoke at Wales, about how it would affect people from both parties, of every race. Those workers don’t know what will happen next year. And therefore, (since) Government has taken this irreversible decision, we are demanding that they pay the workers their severance immediately, urgently, that this is the law and the calculations be accurate.”
“I was in the sugar belt last weekend and I had a meeting with many workers from Canje and Skeldon and I’ll be meeting with workers from Wales and Enmore and the other factories in the New Year. But their biggest concern seems to be about what they are told about how they will get their severance and many of them are
Scenes from one of the many protests by workers for their severance payments
dissatisfied with the calculations.”
Jagdeo related that he has since asked a legal team and labour unions to visit the estates and advise the workers on their rights under the labour laws. He revealed that this legal team will be composed of former Attorney General Anil Nandlall, as well as other Opposition Members of Parliament who happen to be lawyers.
“So they’ll be holding meetings in the sugar belt, at which workers can come with their agreements and calculations; many of them have major issues about the applicability of different aspects of the union agreement being managed by GuySuCo on how it will be respected or honoured.”
“So I want the sugar workers who did not get to come to my meeting to know that in January I intend to meet with all of them to talk about a way forward for sugar workers and their families, as I’ve done many times when I was President. I met directly with the Bauxite workers in Burmine when they lost their markets and worked with them. In the meantime, if they have legal issues they can attend these workshops.”
According to Jagdeo, Government has an obligation to provide subsidies to displaced sugar workers in the sugar belt, in the same way subsidies were given in Linden when problems with Bauxite arose. Jagdeo also urged the Government to embark on a massive training programme that will be determined based upon the workers’ desires and not on a predetermined feasibility analysis.
“I don’t have any faith that this Government knows its head from its foot, so I don’t want it to determine the feasibility of anything. Look at the rice project they started in Wales and wanted to push some of the workers there. It’s a failure. So you train people in what they see opportunities in.”
“Secondly, I’m hearing the Government will make some land available but they can’t get their severance. That has nothing to do with severance. We would like lands be given to all the workers, (but) first of all they have to receive their severance.”
No severance
Jagdeo’s comments come on the same day as an announcement from the Guyana Agricultural and General Workers Union that the Guyana Sugar Corporation (GuySuCo) cannot provide severance payments until next year. According to GAWU in a statement, GuySuCo informed them during a meeting on Wednesday that redundant workers at Skeldon, Rose Hall and East Demerara estates would be affected.
The statement relates that while GuySuCo was allocated $6.3 billion, this is to maintain operations at the remaining estates, rather than for the workers. A $2.5 billion loan GuySuCo recently obtained is also for the same purpose.
GAWU related that while they were told another sum for payments is in the pipelines, Government would have to consider the request and possibly seek supplemental financing. As such, GAWU was apprehensive that payments would only be made until February next year.“The admission by GuySuCo only serves to make matters worse as the beleaguered workers are now being told that they have no job and will not receive their legally entitled severance payments when the Corporation kicks them out on to the road on December 29, this year.”
“This for the GAWU is most upsetting and only serves to rub salt in the wound. Our Union, in view of the Corporation’s depressing information, has requested that GuySuCo retains the workers in suitable employment until it is in a position to honour the workers severance payments,” GAWU said.
It is a bitter turn even as thousands of sugar workers have already been made redundant and have spent months protesting for their severance. GAWU’s statement was confirmed by Agriculture Minister Noel Holder, who admitted during a press conference on Friday that monies were budgeted to pay workers in January of 2018.
