– as GUYSUCO, GAWU reach agreement for 2011
THE Guyana Agricultural and General Workers Union (GAWU) and the Guyana Sugar Corporation (GuySuCo) yesterday reached agreement on the formula applicable to award Annual Production Incentive (API) for this year (2011).

For the production equivalent to 31,200 tonnes sugar, a day’s pay will be awarded as API to qualified workers, according to a statement from GAWU.

Thus, the Corporation’s revised target of 282,712 tonnes enables workers to receive not less than 9.06 days’ pay. The year’s production which stands at 146,712 tonnes sugar as at yesterday already entitles workers to 4.7 days’ pay.

GAWU said it is remarkable that the Corporation, unlike in recent years, exercised wisdom to settle with the Union, wage adjustment and API award and to do so months prior to the conclusion of the second crop in the year.

In recent years, there was much controversy and confrontation between the parties on the resolution of these issues, not forgetting last year (2010) the Corporation’s threat to hijack the Recognition Agreement subsisting since 1976 between the Union and the Corporation.

Certainly the industry’s workforce, against the backdrop of the two  agreements, are now much energized as they, among other things, are diligently pursuing the reaping of the crop’s canes across the industry.

Next Thursday at 10:30hrs the Union and the Corporation are to append the API Agreement at the Corporation’s Training Centre at LBI Estate.