THE Guyana Agricultural and General Workers Union (GAWU) yesterday addressed many vexed issues of workers at its regional conference, themed “Workers Unity and Solidarity Paramount Now!” The conference, attended by 160 delegates, was held in the union’s conference room, Kingston, Georgetown.
According to a release, the General -Secretary of the union presented the General Council Report at the conference.
He addressed the gathering for 1 hr, 40 minutes and spoke to 29 matters, including the vexed issues: award of a day’s pay for every 85,000 tonnes of sugar as Annual Production Incentive (API) to sugar workers and the corporation’s flouting of the union/corporation Recognition Agreement in not entering into collective bargaining with the union for the first time in 26 years.
The conference also addressed the non-resolved issues affecting the union members in some non-sugar bargaining units.
It also noted that the Sugar Industry Labour Welfare Fund Committee (SILWFC) has failed to address the union’s demands for a salary rise and improvements in other conditions of work for its employees.
The conference denounced as well the Demerara Timbers Limited (DTL) for its failure, so far, to meet with the union under the aegis of the Ministry of Social Protection with a view that its employees who are far away at Mabura Hill, some 160 miles away from Georgetown, could have their wages and salaries adjusted in light of the high cost of living there.
“Conference also passed unanimously resolutions on education and training, on unity of the working class, on wage/salary increases and API for 2015, on the National Insurance Scheme, and on the state of wage increases for workers at SILWFC and DTL. A resolution was also passed to pre-empt the closure of any estate and the sellout/privatisation of the sugar industry,” the release said.
Following the meeting, it was expected that delegates would return to their respective workplaces imbued with a reinvigorated spirit to continue to wield stronger unity and solidarity among themselves, to forge ahead with their struggles, for an urgent settlement of their API dispute and the opening of purposeful negotiations, though already late, on their 2015 wage/salary claims.
Delegates also agreed that solidarity with the smaller bargaining units like those at SILWFC and DTL may need the support of the union’s bigger and productive bargaining units.
The conference was well attended and the attendees came from Enmore, LBI, Wales and Uitvlugt estates, Noble House Seafoods, Demerara Distillers Limited,the Demerara Harbour Bridge Corporation, National Parks Commission, Sugar Industry Labour Welfare Fund Committee (SILWFC) and CARICOM Rice Mills Limited.
A similar conference will be held in Berbice during the first quarter of 2016 to pave the way for the union’s 21st Congress, scheduled to take place not later than the last quarter of 2016. The union’s Constitution requires the holding of two area conferences between congresses.