Latest update November 22nd, 2024 1:00 AM
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Sugar strike over
GuySuCo CEO, Paul Bhim
NAACIE General Secretary, Kenneth Joseph
– workers to be paid today
Sugar workers, who were facing the very real prospects of not being paid wages and salaries, will be receiving their monies today, officials of the Guyana Sugar Corporation (GuySuCo) assured yesterday.
This comes even as news that a week-old strike has ended and at least one workers’ union has committed that their members will be returning to duties today.
With fears that GuySuCo’s inability to pay this week’s wages would further exacerbate an already tense situation, the news yesterday was good for the industry.
According to the Corporation’s Chief Executive Officer, Paul Bhim, one of the country’s main buyers of sugar has agreed to advance some of its payments and workers will be paid today.
GuySuCo says it is facing a critical cash situation, with future earnings under threat from low production.
Office workers confirmed that the Corporation earlier this week sent internal memos warning that in all likelihood wages and salaries payments set for today would not have been met until next week.
GuySuCo had said that a sugar boat for Europe was set to sail over the weekend and payments would have been remitted by that customer once the sailing had been confirmed.
Yesterday, a senior government official also said that the administration is working closely with GuySuCo to ensure workers are paid.
The state-owned corporation has asked government for $2B to assist payments to creditors and this is under consideration.
Meanwhile, Bhim disclosed that the sugar company has received word that the strike is over and workers will be back on the job today.
Kenneth Joseph, General Secretary of the National Association of Agricultural, Commercial and Industrial Employees (NAACIE) also confirmed that some of his members had started filtering back to work as of yesterday.
Officials of the Guyana Agricultural and General Workers’ Union (GAWU) also confirmed that their members will resume duties today.
GuySuCo has been holding out that wage talks will cease until workers returned for duty.
GAWU has been demanding a 15% across the board increase but the Corporation is holding out that production must increase.
Workers’ attendance, just over 50%, has been blamed for the low production although the union insists that the Skeldon factory, commissioned a year ago, should be blamed instead for unacceptable performance.
GuySuCo has over $7B in debts with $1.6B due to a Dutch-owned bank by the end of next month.
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