Sugar production will be lowest since 1991 - GAWU warns

Sugar production will be lowest since 1991 – GAWU warns

Dec 08, 2010 News

…as Uitvlugt cancels grinding for the year

By Leonard Gildarie

As heavy rains continue across the country, the Guyana Sugar Corporation (GuySuCo) citing extremely wet conditions, yesterday suspended grinding at the Uitvlugt factory for the year, making it less likely that even last year’s industry production could be met.
The disclosure comes even as the Guyana Agricultural and General Workers’ Union (GAWU) – which represents the largest bloc of sugar workers – denied that an agreement for wage and salary increase has been brokered.
Yesterday, GuySuCo and the Ministry of Agriculture met with several farmers, sugar workers and drainage and irrigation personnel at the Uitvlugt Community Centre, West Coast Demerara, to update them of developments.
Deputy Chief Executive Officer of GuySuCo, Raj Singh, announced that rains and strikes have heavily contributed to a harsh situation where 420,000 tonnes of cane will now have to be carried over to the new year – cane that would have produced some 31,000 tonnes of sugar. GuySuCo officials confirmed that a decision was taken to shift the Uitvlugt workers to Wales.
Wales Estate, for the year, is still short by 4,000 tonnes to meet the 16,647 tonnes target set. At Uitvlugt, as of Monday, last, production for the year stood at 11,456 tonnes, way short of the projected target of 16,075 tonnes.
With GuySuCo arguing it has no money, the news about Uitvlugt may spell of even bleaker prospects for sugar workers hoping for some payout before Christmas.
Yesterday, GAWU denied newspaper reports that it had accepted a two weeks “Holiday With Pay”, a yearly bonus, as a substitute for wage increase.
In a release, the union noted that the headline “Sugar Workers accept two weeks’ pay offer” is misleading and erroneous as carried in the front page of yesterday’s edition of a daily newspaper. Sugar workers, like employees in the private and public sectors in accordance with statutory requirements, are entitled to two weeks’ Holiday-with-Pay (HWP) each year, GAWU explained.
LOWEST SINCE 1991
According to the union, during a wages negotiation meeting on Monday, last, the Corporation disclosed it was prepared to pay workers the bonus not later than December 31 – except for Enmore Estate. The workers at that estate would receive their HWP on December 17 since the second crop concluded on December 03.
“The Holiday-with-Pay that the workers would receive, we emphasise, is their legal entitlement and is also by contractual agreement between the Union and the Corporation and is not a pay-off for the denial of the workers of a pay increase.”
According to GAWU, sugar workers remain distraught over the fact that GuySuCo had said Monday that there would be no wage increases and Annual Production Incentive (API) for 2010. “They have decided to continue their struggle for a pay increase and API entitlement next year. The current downpours have virtually caused the reaping of canes to cease. The sugar production this year would be the lowest since 1991 when the industry produced 156,690 tonnes.”
GAWU stressed that with production on Monday standing at 209,846 tonnes, GuySuCo was reminded that in 1990 when 129,920 tonnes were produced, five days’ pay as API was awarded to all qualified workers.
Meanwhile, both Agriculture Minister Robert Persaud and Region Three Chairman, Julius Faerber, updated farmers of development of the Community Drainage and Irrigation Project which is being executed by residents across the country.
According to Persaud, residents themselves will have to monitor works to ensure that quality is assured.
He warned that complacency is not an option and workers can be sent home. On Monday, a Berbice overseer and koker attendant were fired for failing to monitor a koker, causing flooding.
Both the Minister and Faerber spoke of extensive works in the region and country with equipment carrying out critical jobs.
According to the Chairman, planned works are nearly completed with several excavators deployed in the region, a main agricultural region. There were also complaints of illegal garbage dumping and demands for more pay for drainage and irrigation workers.
COMFORTABLE
GAWU has been demanding a 15% increase for its members but GuySuCo, facing heavy losses from a price cut and one of the lowest workers’ turnouts in its history, has made a counter-offer of up to 5%, but based this on production targets being met from 250,000 tonnes upwards.
Last year, the industry registered 234,000 tonnes of sugar, one of the lowest in years, but the industry is now looking at possibly an even lower production.
With more canes on the ground than any period over the last five years, Singh said GuySuCo had been sure that a 280,000 tonnes of sugar was very realistic. But this reality had dwindled quickly with workers’ attendance dropping alarmingly to an average of 52% for this year, compared to 75% in recent years.
For GuySuCo to be “comfortable”, the industry would have to produce in the vicinity of 280,000-300,000 tonnes of sugar annually.
“This would have been the year for GuySuCo to turn around,” Deputy CEO Singh told the gathering, which included Minister Persaud, Regional Chairman Faerber and Chief Executive Officer of the National Drainage and Irrigation Authority, Lionel Wordsworth.
To compound matters, the one-week strike saw opportunity days lost that could have produced close to 6,000 tonnes or $1B earned.
Even after the strike, the workers’ turnout was poor with only 3,000 tonnes produced in one week.
Leaving back 420,000 tonnes of cane would definitely affect the plans of the company for the next four years, as it has been banking on increase planting to boost production levels.
Minister Persaud yesterday urged for both GuySuCo and the workers to “hold a level head and ensure that the industry is protected”. He noted that government had removed the sugar levy and even built the modern Skeldon factory, with a packaging plant now being constructed at Enmore. He reiterated that this is all testimony of the faith that government is in the industry.
But GAWU and GuySuCo will have to collaborate. And this would have to be realised even as GuySuCo owe more than $7B to creditors and suppliers. Government is now considering an appeal by the state-owned GuySuCo to plug $2B into the struggling entity to enable it to meet critical payments to creditors and suppliers, Persaud disclosed.