THE Guyana Agricultural and General Workers’ Union (GAWU) East Demerara Branch passed a resolution renewing its support for the union’s president, Komal Chand, amid calls by some ex-sugar workers for him to step down.

The branch met on Wednesday and the passed the resolution having taken into account an article in the Guyana Times which sought to besmirch the character of the trade unionist, GAWU said in a statement, while providing a full text of the resolution.

According to the resolution, East Demerara GAWU Branch is very disturbed by the content of the article which called for the resignation of Chand. “We recognized from the article that reportedly four (4) workers of East Demerara Estate expressed certain views about the Union, more particularly about the Union’s President, Cde Komal Chand. We of the East Demerara GAWU Branch hereby disassociate ourselves from the sentiments that were therein expressed,” the branch stated in its resolution.

According to the branch, workers are generally supportive of GAWU’s work and actions in standing-up and opposing plans to close and sellout sugar estates. “They have expressed their satisfaction that the Union has worked and is working in their interest at this difficult time for them and are supportive of the Union’s multiple approach,” the branch stated.
The East Demerara GAWU Branch has pledged to continue to support the union.

In a separate release issued days ago, GAWU said that the article was misleading.
“The article posits that our Union agreed with the Government to partially settle some 4,000-odd workers severance payments. This is completely and utterly fallacious. When the matter was raised by the Government, both GAWU and NAACIE reiterated that severance payments should be settled in full to all workers at once as is set out in the Termination of Employment and Severance Pay Act (TESPA),” GAWU stated.

The union said it had disagreed with Finance Minister Winston Jordan’s arguments that should the full payment be made it would fuel inflation and result in the depreciation of the Guyana Dollar.

“We also pointed out to the Government’s delegation that the workers had an expectation to receive their payments and which expectations were fortified by the public comments of the Agriculture Minister, among others. Certainly, had we reached such an agreement, both the GAWU and the Government would have undoubtedly made such announcement in our respective media statements,” GAWU said.

It said that the sugar workers who levelled such inaccurate remarks at our union and its leaders maybe unaware of the organisation’s modus operandi. “Certainly, had they been aware they would have known that GAWU has a position that the workers must be involved and are consulted,” the union said. GAWU said it is proud of the struggle that it has waged and will continue to wage in defense of the workers’ rights and livelihood.