Working class still poor despite oil wealth- PNCR

May 03, 2025 News

Kaieteur News- In a nation abundantly blessed with oil wealth, its working class continues to live in poverty as a direct result of government policies, according to the People’s National Congress Reform (PNCR).

In a statement to the media on Friday, the largest political opposition party highlighted that Guyanese workers observed Labour Day 2025 but had no reason for celebration. Instead, the party argued “it was another Labour Day in poverty.”

Working class still poor despite oil wealth- PNCR

Guyanese have been complaining about struggling to meet their daily expenses as the cost-of-living increases.

According to the PNCR, “The day marked no progress or achievement in terms of a better quality of life, higher benefits, and compensation, for the workers of Guyana. There is no respect from the government and there is no hope for the future.”

Labour Day merely highlighted the growing hardships and struggles of workers in Guyana under a government that believes development is limited to “bricks and concrete” rather than people, the party argued. It said the government is continuously forcing Guyanese workers to live from pay cheque to pay cheque even though the country boasts massive oil wealth.

“Even with oil wealth, the ranks of the working poor continue to swell. The rights of workers and their elected union representatives continue to be violated by a government obsessed with control and domination. There are too many of our workers still experiencing a life of destitution, economic insecurity, and hardships,” the PNCR said.

The party was keen to note that Guyana’s constitution enshrines the importance of workers. It states in Article 21 that “The source of the growth of social wealth and of the well-being of the people, and of each individual, is the labour of the people.”

To this end, the Opposition group argued that workers locally must be well paid, valued, honored, respected and celebrated. The party urged that workers must have a high quality of life with all their rights and freedoms protected and promoted.

With the situation starkly different under the present government, the PNCR assured that this is the last Labour Day under the PPP government and as the next government, it will ensure workers have a reason to celebrate.

“As the next government, we, in APNU, pledge that Labour Day 2026 will be a day of celebration of a better quality of life for the working class of Guyana. By a better quality of life, we mean, among other things, guaranteed living wages for all, higher household incomes, better working conditions, better social services, and more hope and confidence in the future,” the party stated.

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Labour Day, oil, PNCR, Wealth, workers

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