Albion workers march in solidarity with severed workers

Feb 13, 2018 News

Albion workers marching yesterday

The Guyana Agricultural and General Workers’ Union (GAWU) yesterday organised a march with sugar workers, executives and regional representatives of the Union. The march commenced at Kilcoy Village and concluded at the Albion Estate Road.
GAWU President Komal Chand, General Secretary Seepaul Narine, other union representatives and several sugar workers addressed those gathered.
The workers of Albion marched in solidarity with their comrades from Skeldon, Rose Hall, East Demerara and Wales Estates. They called on the government to pay the displaced workers their severance, to re-open the closed estates, and also rejected and opposed any and all plans to close or sell the Albion Estate.
Narine reminded the workers that the Special Purpose Unit that falls under NICIL and which has now taken control of the remaining estates, and those not in operation, was set up “as a division by the government to sellout those estates and the assets of those estates”. He questioned, “if you are not thinking about selling, you are not thinking about getting rid of this estate, then why do you have to vest Albion Estate for instance in NICIL under SPU?”.
Narine opined that when the other estates are sold, they are likely to look at the remaining estates. According to him, the solidarity being shown is an avenue to highlight that the estates should be reopened as a first priority and also to have the severed workers who received half their severance to be paid in full.
Stephen Indardat, GAWU’s Branch Chairman at Albion, called on the workers to report to the Union when they are not satisfied with something at their respective work area, “the Union is here, the leaders are here to stand with you at any moment and under any circumstances. Whenever you see things going wrong you have all right to complain, bring your message to the field secretary or any other member and we can have it channeled and solved out”.
He pleaded with the workers to not allow the Albion Estate to run to the ground, taking into consideration the plight of the other sugar workers who were retrenched.
“If you look at your sister estates and see what is transpiring, families are on the road, market area and transportation wise is doomed, and you check an area like this (Albion) where people only depend on the Estate… and if this should close, picture what will transpire around the community”, Indardat posited.
Komal Chand told those gathered that they need to remain vigilant, since they were told that when the Wales Estate is closed the other sugar estates will be consolidated.
“When they closed the remaining parts of LBI estate, in 2016, they discussed with us that they wanted the cane cutters to be transferred, they wanted the power station to be transferred to Enmore. They said they are consolidating Enmore…but a few months after they closed Enmore. Then they said they are going to sell Skeldon and then close Rose Hall, so how can you believe them that they would not close or sell out Albion, Blairmont or Uitvlugt?” Chand argued.
He appealed for all to have unity and continue to stand in solidarity with their fellow former workers, while stating that it is the people that make history and not the leaders. He added that GAWU is opposed to privatisation but if it has to take place, “there must be a decent arrangement…decent pay, decent job”.
Close to one hundred workers turned up for yesterday morning’s march brandishing placards and a banner, coupled with a heavy police presence.

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