GuySuCo’s largest union urges overhaul of Board

Feb 22, 2014 News

– says production decline most negative occurrence in recent history

The sugar industry’s biggest union has urged an overhaul of the Board of Directors for the Guyana Sugar Corporation (GuySuCo).
In its Mashramani message released yesterday, the Guyana Agricultural and General Workers Union (GAWU), believed that the most negative occurrence in the recent history of the republic is the real, clear and present danger to Guyana’s sugar industry which employs thousands of its members.

GAWU wants an immediate overhaul of GuySuCo’s Board of Directors.

With the industry recording an embarrassing 23-year production low last year, Government has been struggling to keep the industry afloat with accusations being thrown back and forth.
“The blame game can never restore the fortunes of this lifeline economic industry. A revamped GuySuCo board and management skill sets; motivation for harvesters and factory workers to return to the fields and ancillary projects, among other things, all must combine to bring sugar back,” GAWU said.
The union, which says it represents over 16,000 workers from the sugar estates in Berbice and Demerara, has been increasingly vocal in recent times as the industry continues its slide.
Last year, a target of 260,000 tonnes was revised a number of times to 190,000 tonnes after it became clear that the industry would be struggling. The final declaration totaled just around 187,000 tonnes at the end of December, placed the Corporation in a tight financial situation.
A number of suppliers have been refusing to extend credit.
GuySuCo has been blaming labour shortages, weather, technical issues and problems in the fields as among the contributing factors to the decline.
Government has said that a 37% phased price cut by its European customer has not helped much.
Several Caribbean states have pulled out from sugar but Guyana went ahead and invested US$200M in a sugar modernization project at Skeldon, Berbice, that included a new factory. However, the factory has been plagued with technical problems.
In recent years, GuySuCo has been turning to the Administration for cash bailouts as production declined with a $4B approved by the National Assembly as recently as December.
There has been calls for the Board to be replaced, with President Donald Ramotar, himself a former Director, announcing that a decision has been taken to name Dr. Raj Singh, a US-based Chairman, to be the new Chief Executive Officer. Singh is expected to move back home any day now to assume that position.
With GAWU’s membership largely concentrated in the eight sugar estates, the declining production with no clear indications of recovery plans in sight would spell worrying times.
Sugar itself has slid from the top earner, to now third place behind gold and rice.
Meanwhile, GAWU in its assessment of Guyana in its 44th year as a Republic, pointed out that it is a fact that workers, especially the “humble, hardworking labourers, factory-workers, agricultural harvesters, heavy duty drivers, the hundreds of ladies in the sea-food and the commercial sectors, among others,” represent the base and foundation of any economy.
“GAWU will never disrespect the role of academics, teachers, nurses, lawyers, architects, engineers and other professionals. All are needed to manifest levels of production largely left to the toils of the lower levels. Obviously there must be collaboration at all levels for productivity and economic progress to be sustained.”
The union was convinced that the PPP/C governments have provided an “enabling” environment through worker-friendly legislation, for effective worker representation.
“Elsewhere in the Republic, GAWU sees the need for political dialogue at the highest levels to resolve differences affecting the productive management of the state, its resources and governance.”