A NUMBER of cane planters along with officials of the Guyana Agricultural and General Workers Union (GAWU) staged a picketing exercise outside of the Head Office of the Guyana Sugar Corporation Inc (GuySuCo) on Wednesday.
A statement from GAWU noted that the protest is a continuation of workers’ effort to dissuade the administration and GuySuCo from closing the estate.

“For the planters, it is now five weeks since they have been able to work following a decision by the sugar corporation to cease planting at the estate,” GAWU noted.
According to the union, GuySuCo maintained that the planters must take up cane cutting tasks. “This is a difficult undertaking for many planters given a number of factors. Also in instances when cane planting is unavailable, the planters are offered certain other tasks which are currently available on the estate but are not being offered to the affected workers.

Such denial is not in keeping with the agreement between the Union and the Company and is another disrespect meted out by the Corporation to its hard-working employees.”
The planters are calling on the GuySuCo to provide them with their normal tasks or to pay them in lieu of the Corporation’s denial. The planters are also upset that a request by GAWU to engage the Minister of Agriculture, Noel Holder,remains unanswered at this time.

“The Union’s request to Minister Holder followed an engagement between the planters and the Union with Minister within the Ministry of Social Protection, Keith Scott on March 27, 2017. During that engagement,Minister Scott had suggested that an audience with the Agriculture Minister be sought. The Union and the workers positively considered Minister Scott’s suggestion. However, so far, we are yet to hear from the Agriculture Minister,” the GAWU release stated.

The planters and the Union are of the firm view that the halting of cane planting is indicating that plans are being made for the Estate’s closure.