– GAWU president, Komal Chand

THE Guyana Agricultural and General Workers Union (GAWU) is optimistic that today’s meeting with the Government and GuySuCo would allow for proposals for the betterment of the sugar industry. Finance Minister Winston Jordan recently described money invested in sugar as a waste of time.Sharing his optimism, GAWU president, Komal Chand, disclosed: “We hope to hear ideas and proposals to give us time to reflect, and reach with the Government and GuySuCo to decide the way forward for the industry as well as (regarding) the closure of the Wales Estate.”

Alleging that no document had been shared with the union in relation to studies that GuySuCo might have conducted to come to conclusions on various projects, Chand declared: “So far, there has been no engagement leading to positions that the Government (wishes) to take in the industry; thus we hope that the meeting will not be an exercise (merely for) public consumption.”

GuySuCo Chief Executive Officer (CEO), Glenn Hanoman, has met with Cabinet to discuss certain steps the corporation would be taking; however, the news that reached the union is that the GuySuCo Board was supposed to have met with the Cabinet, but the CEO was the only one to have done so. This, Chand said, is evidence of GAWU being excluded in the past from decision making and consultations.

He said that when the union gets opportunity tomorrow, it would pose its proposals and suggestions so that workers and the people would not be disappointed if there is a done deal.

The GAWU president is speculating that issues such as the divestment of the industry will be discussed, as well as the alleged intention to close the Rose Hall Estate factory in East Berbice and a great part of the sugar cultivation at Providence, East Bank Demerara.

That apart, the cessation of cultivation at La Bonne Intention (LBI), East Coast Demerara is another issue in the pipeline for discussion, as well as the prospective sale of the Skeldon and Enmore Sugar factories.
GAWU also intends to highlight that, for the second consecutive year, employees have been denied a pay increase.

With a debt of $87B, GuySuCo had said it will not be able to accommodate pay increases.