Wales strike: GAWU says workers will not receive extra 0.79 percent API

Feb 07, 2009 News

In keeping with their threat to continue their strike action, the Guyana Sugar Corporation (GuySuCo) workers at the Wales Estate downed their tools for the third day in protest over the non payment of their annual production incentive (API), which factory representatives of the workers say have been owed to them since the end of last month.

The General Secretary of the Guyana Agricultural and General Workers Union (GAWU), Seepaul Narine, said that the union considers the matter closed. Following discussions between the union and GuySuCo, a decision had been reached to grant the workers eight percent API.

The union had requested 8.79 percent API, but the sugar company was not willing to give more than eight percent. At this point, Narine said, the union had requested that the additional 0.79 percent be channelled through the union for the workers’ educational activities. GAWU said that GuySuCo agreed to this.

This agreement, said Narine, would affect all of the workers, irrespective of which union represents them.

This angered the workers, and became the basis for the second day of strike action at the Wales Sugar Estate.

Since this move caused some contention, Narine noted, he had dispatched a letter to the sugar company, advising them that since the move to use the 0.79 percent for workers’ educational activities had caused such contention amongst the workers, it would be better for the 0.79 percent API to remain with GuySuCo.

According to the General Secretary of GAWU, the matter of the outstanding API has been resolved, with the workers receiving eight percent API by means of five per cent of the incentive being paid within a month’s time, and the additional three per cent by mid-September.

According to Gordon Thomas, a factory representative of the workers, the sugar workers yesterday turned up for work as usual. One of the factory managers called the workers’ representative and asked if they would strike again, since GuySuCo wanted to continue the testing, which usually goes on just before grinding time at the factory.

Starting up the machinery would incur a cost to the sugar company, and the factory manager said that if the workers were going to strike, then they would not start up the machines.

The representative said that the workers had come to work. With that, the boilers were lit and preparations were made to begin the trials. It was at this point that the workers walked off.

“The workers here are frustrated because they have not received their API,” said Thomas. “So we are taking the necessary measures to frustrate them.”

He continued, reiterating that the workers were entitled to 8.79 percent API. Yesterday represented the last working day of the week for the sugar workers, and Thomas said that, come Monday morning, the workers would, “make a firm decision as to whether or not we are going to maintain our struggle for what is owed to us.”

The Wales Estate had, up to yesterday, seen three days of strike action stemming from the failure of the sugar company to pay the workers an 8.79 percent API. GuySuCo staffers at the Wales Estate have noted that the 0.79 percent API affects GuySuCo workers all across Guyana, and is not only applicable for them. The total 0.79 percent API, they estimated, was some $50 million.

Meanwhile the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of GuySuCo, Nick Jackson, said the problems at the Wales Estate need to be fixed, since some 15 tonnes of sugar needed to be delivered to Europe; and for the shipment to get there on time, the shipment would need to leave Guyana by the end of the first week of March.

“Everything that puts that at risk affects us,” said Jackson. He disclosed that GuySuCo had discussions with the union, and the matter had been laid to rest. Right now, he said, the problem is with a pocket of workers in Wales, and the union needs to sort it out.

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Wales strike: GAWU says workers will not receive extra 0.79 percent API

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