A NATIONAL strike was averted this week after Cabinet approved $1B for the bankrupt Guyana Sugar Corporation (GuySuCo) to pay sugar workers’ wages and salaries.

Prime Minister Moses Nagamootoo made the announcement Friday during an address at a consultation with educators, parents and students on VAT on private education at the National Cultural Centre.

He said the $1B approved by Cabinet Tuesday last averted a possible a “national strike.”

“So we discussed it and we agreed on Tuesday that we would advance $1B to GuySuCo to pay wages to the sugar workers,” he said.

According to the prime minister, within the first 20 months of assuming office, the coalition Government has advanced a total of $32B to save the jobs and livelihoods of sugar workers.

When contacted on Friday, GuySuCo’s Chief Executive Officer (CEO), Errol Hanoman, told the Guyana Chronicle that $1B was indeed approved by Cabinet and sugar workers will be paid today (Saturday).

“We needed that help to pay the wages this year. We did not have enough resources of our own, so the Government has stepped in and helped us out with $1B,” Hanoman said.

He admitted that the recent strike action by employees affected production of the sugar company.

“To the extent that we’ve had strikes, it would have affected our ability to produce, which would affect our ability to sell, which would affect our cash generation,” the CEO explained.

WORKERS’ ATTITUDE
Over the past years, GuySuCo has had its fair share of challenges and with the closure and diversification of several estates, sugar workers continue to rebel.

Even though there is a significant amount of cane to be harvested at Enmore Estate, East Coast Demerara, some sugar workers there are objecting to work, Hanoman had told the Guyana Chronicle recently.

Hanoman emphasised that the main focus of the corporation right now is to harvest as many canes as possible. He said both male and female workers were encouraged to assist in the harvesting of canes, but some objected.

GuySuCo is battling to achieve its first-crop target of 74,172 tonnes of sugar as the industry is faced with only a 59 per cent turnout of cane harvesters. Despite having ideal weather for harvesting, poor turnout of workers is diminishing GuySuCo’s chance of meeting its overall 2017 target of 198,000 tonnes.

This newspaper understands that some five of the six estates are functioning, but the breakdown of workers showed that Albion Estate had a turnout of 68 per cent, Rosehall 67 per cent, East Demerara 58 per cent, Blairmont 54 per cent and Uitvlugt the lowest, at 48 per cent.

With the second-crop target set at 124,286 tonnes, GuySuCo will be looking to mobilise workers in order to improve the pace of production and boost its chances of a successful year.

PRIVATE SECTOR
Meanwhile, the Ministry of Agriculture on Friday announced that private sector bodies have expressed interest in management of the sugar industry as it advances its divestment plan, which incorporates dairy and seed paddy production, among others.

Members of the East Berbice Development Association met with and had dialogue with Minister of Agriculture Noel Holder on Friday, when a number of issues were discussed.

Among those is the “freeing up’ of the industry to the private sector, a release from the Agriculture Ministry said.

The meeting, which was held in the boardroom of the ministry’s Regent Road and Shiv Chanderpaul Drive office, saw the teams mulling ways in which the association as a collective body can lease the factory and land at the Skeldon Estate.

“According to Mr. David Subnauth, for the estate to become once again profitable it must be managed by locals, whom he believes have the ‘know-it-all’ to ensure it returns once again to its glory days,” the release stated.

It was further noted that the Agriculture Minister requested that the group submit a proposal so that further discussion can commence.

The association committed to having such delivered within a month’s time, but made a request for Government to have legislation implemented, which will allow the private players to make a contribution to the industry without hindrance.