What is currently taking place in the sugar industry-the nation’s largest industry, should be of grave concern not only to the stakeholders but to the entire nation because it seemed that during this crop the industry was doing much better with lesser incidences of major strikes, absenteeism etc. In fact, production figures since the present crop began have been on target at most estates and officials of the Guyana Sugar Corporation expressed optimism that the target for the crop would be achieved.

However, with the major union the Guyana Agricultural and General Workers Union (GAWU) has threatened to shut down the industry with a general strike and this certainly is not a healthy sign and could brew into a major setback for the industry and the national economy which hinges on it.

According to GUYSUCO it withdrew from wages negotiations with GAWU because it would not do so under duress and cited a strike at LBI Estate as the source of its dissatisfaction.

The Corporation made it clear that to resort to strike action while the negotiations are ongoing is seen as a breach of good faith and an attempt to pressure GUYSUCO into submission and place its negotiating team in a vulnerable position.

“Such a move is only counter-productive to the task at hand and serves to delay the conclusion of the negotiations,” GUYSUCO stated.

The Corporation is correct to point that that it is not common industrial relations practice to be negotiating under duress.

However, the issue in this instance appears not to be one purely of duress, as GAWU claims that the LBI strike is totally divorced from the wages negotiation and had to do with weekly scheduled targets at the estate.

The President of GAWU, Komal Chand pointed out that the shop steward and union officials at the LBI Estate have advised him that the workers there are on strike over the inability of GUYSUCO to agree with the union on the weekly production target for last week.

Workers for each crop work to achieve a weekly production target as well as the production target for the crop.

The GAWU President explained that the second crop started late, resulting in the continuation of operation in the non-schedule grinding week, and the need for setting of targets for this period.

Chand said the latest action by GUYSUCO is reprehensible and provocative because the strike at the LBI Estate is centered on a target dispute, not over wages as the Corporation believes.

He said the union’s representatives are strongly of the view that the move by the Corporation was uncalled for, as the industrial action by the workers was totally unrelated to the wages discussion which is under the supervision of a senior Officer at the Ministry of Labour.

However, there has been another disturbing development and that is the other union in the sugar industry the National Association of Agricultural, Clerical, Commercial and Industrial Employees (NAACIE) claimed yesterday that its workers were locked out from the estates.

If the union’s claim is true then such action by the Corporation is rather puzzling because it is unconnected to the current wages negotiation between GAWU and GUYSUCO.

Nevertheless, in all of this, what should be of primary importance to all stakeholders is the bigger picture, and that is the long term effect on the industry, which is trying to return to viability, as well as the consequences of the national economy.

This column had advocated strongly that the issue of industrial relations with respect to the sugar industry should be given closer attention because based on the findings of the inquiry which was set up to examine the industry it was clear that industrial relations was one of the weak links which impeded production and productivity.

It also advocated that at all times good sense and a spirit of compromise should prevail from all stakeholders and thus avert any antagonism which only harms the workers and the industry.

And therefore in this current impasse, all sides should avoid resorting to blame throwing and get down to the serious business of resolving it expeditiously because unless this stance is adopted the consequences could be grave and regrettable.