The Plight of the Sweeper Cleaner

Jan 21, 2018 News

The minimum wage within the Government sector has seen an increase in each of the budgets presented so far since the Coalition Government took office; however, there is a group of people who are paid by the Guyana Government, who continue to be overlooked whenever increases are paid.
They provide a necessary service within the Government schools. They are required to be on the job every day to ensure that pupils and students are presented with clean classrooms, as well as to ensure that sanitary facilities are in reasonable a condition as well. Those workers are referred to as sweeper-cleaners, and they are paid $37,000 per month, and have been excluded from all packages paid since the change of Government.
The aggrieved workers who have been calling for improved conditions of work even before the change of Government, have been making every effort to take their case wherever they may find a sympathetic ear, and surely there is someone within the Region Five Democratic Council, RDC, who is sympathetic to their cause.
The issue was raised at the last statutory meeting of the RDC, held on January 18, last, and a report is expected at the next meeting scheduled for February.
The workers have in recent times sought to get themselves organised under the umbrella of the Guyana Public Service Union, but are quite frustrated by what they see as lack of action on the part of the union.
Further, workers are of the view that sweeper-cleaners do not amount to so great a number and as such has caused the Government undue strain to pay them the minimum wage.
There are many workers with over fifteen years of service, who would not have enjoyed NIS benefits, be it sickness or maternity, over the years because they were not contributing to the scheme, something beyond their control.
Further down the road, they are not likely to benefit from NIS pension, even though they would have been employed long enough to have made at least the minimum number of contributions in order to qualify for such benefits.
According to the workers, it is time that they be recognised for the services that they are providing in the education system, and the least that the administration can do is to pay them at least the minimum wage, and at the same time, that they be able to contribute to NIS so that when the time shall have come, they would be eligible for whatever the benefits may be.

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