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Vice President Bharrat Jagdeo announced Friday sugar workers will also receive the eight per cent increase in salaries and wages as announced for public sector workers. He said the decision was made at Cabinet meeting on Thursday.
The across-the-board retroactive increase to public servants, teachers, members of the disciplined services, constitutional office holders, and government pensioners was announced by President Irfaan Ali on November 17. The increase is also applicable to the president and government ministers whose salaries are non-taxable. Other workers, whose salaries are taxable will have to pay taxes on the retroactive pay (back pay).
According to Jagdeo the People’s Progressive Party/Civic (PPP/C) government continues to invest in the sugar industry which was shut down under the A Partnership of National Unity and Alliance For Change (APNU+AFC) government, placing more than 7,000 sugar workers and their families on the breadline.
The PPP/C government under the Jagdeo presidency first started closing the sugar estates.
According to an International Labour Organisation (ILO) Study, 5,160 were laid off as a result of the closure of the Wales, Rose Hall, Skeldon and Enmore Estates during the APNU+AFC (2015-2020) government.
The “more than 7000 sugar workers” the vice president said were laid off, the difference may be accounted for in those laid off during closure under his government.
The ILO Study could be read here
https://www.ilo.org/caribbean/information-resources/publications/WCMS_800352/lang–en/index.htm
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