Vice President, Bharrat Jagdeo on Friday announced a six-month pay increase for sugar workers totaling $200M during meeting with them and their un ion leaders.
Sugar workers have staged countrywide strike action against the top-heavy GuySuco management over outstanding wages and salaries dating back to 2019.
Jagdeo engaged the General Council of the Guyana Agricultural Workers Union (GAWU), the Chairman of Board of Directors of GuySuCo, Pravinchandra Dave, and GuySuCo’s Chief Executive Officer (CEO), Sasenarine Singh.
According to an Office of the President release, the meeting addressed the way forward for the sector and ensuring that the interests of all stakeholders are served. “GAWU’s concerns about increases to workers for 2019 were settled. A six-month increase for workers, totalling $200M, was approved for 2019 and is expected to be paid soon. With increases having been paid to workers for 2020, negotiations for 2021 will be addressed at a later date,” the release stated.
At the meeting, it was disclosed that GuySuCo’s management has been working with its new Board of Directors on a turnaround plan for the industry. Further, Vice President Jagdeo assured of the government’s support for the sugar industry, given its role in the local economy and other social considerations. “We are working daily to change the trajectory of the sugar sector,” he said. According to him, work is also continuing on returning assets to GuySuCo that were disposed of in a less than transparent manner by the former administration and not done in the best interest of the company and workers. According to the release, all parties committed to continued engagement.
