“Oil wealth is not a favour; it is a right” – Seepaul Narine tells May Day rally

May 02, 2026 News

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…workers bemoan living paycheck to paycheck

By Telesha Ramnarine

(Kaieteur News) – Twenty-seven-year-old Annesia Nedd lives paycheck to paycheck. She saves a little from weekly salary to meet her $40,000 rent- an amount that is considered quite modest for a one-bedroom apartment in the city. As she joined others yesterday for a May Day rally at the National Park, she summed up her reality this way: “We are out here surviving. Who knows, knows.”

As an employee of the Guyana National Shipping Corporation (GNSC), Nedd shared that had it not been for the few instances of overtime funds she receives, she really doesn’t know how she would get by. “I am managing, and I am trying,” she said with a deep breath, at the FITUG (Federation of Independent Trade Unions of Guyana) Labour Day March and Rally.

“It’s completely stressful and frustrating at times,” she expressed in an interview with Kaieteur News. “It’s frustrating to know there is so much going on in the country, but there are persons still stuck and not benefiting from the whole thing. It’s really sad.”

As a young woman trying to study and move her way up in life, she is hoping that the authorities will consider making the processes for certain things simpler, such as obtaining a house lot. Having applied for one about eight years ago, she said to date she has not heard from the ministry. “I would rather pay a mortgage than a rent,” she shared, adding, “In this economy, I don’t think it’s right or fair for anyone to start a family right now. It isn’t fit for that.”

Another employee, also 27, of Campbellville in Georgetown, who preferred to remain anonymous, raised similar concerns, but noted that trade unions – such as the Clerical and Commercial Workers Union (CCWU) which she is a part of – are trying for workers. However, the biggest help to her would be a raise in pay. “Prices are rising every day, so I would be glad for a raise in salary.  Our salaries are still not doing enough for us,” she shared. “Presently, most of my money go to rent because I don’t have my own land. I’m currently working on that. Along with food and so, by the time I am finished spending on that, I don’t have anything left.”

She believes measures can be implemented to ensure that smaller individuals also benefit from the expanded economy, rather than only those in higher positions, suggesting that authorities consider a pay increase or providing allowances to offer additional support.

Against this backdrop of mounting concerns from workers, authorities at the rally sought to address these issues. President of the Guyana Agricultural and General Workers Union (GAWU) Seepaul Narine spoke about the value of workers’ labour, reminding them that they deserve to share fully in the wealth they have created in the country.

“Because you have given so much, you deserve to share fully in the wealth you have created. That is the heart of our message today. Not as a favour. Not as a charity, but as a right,” Narine expressed.

“Guyana is changing. New roads, new bridges, new hospitals, new schools. But let us never forget the workers’ contributions in all of this. Every brick, every beam, every bag of sugar, every grain of rice, every patient healed, every child taught – that is your labour,” he continued.

He encouraged honest conversation about the issues plaguing workers and urged them not just to complain, but to help in finding solutions together. “The cost of living continues to press on our families. Yes, wages have risen. Yes, taxes have been reduced. But prices for food, rent, transportation and utilities have also risen. Many households still feel the pinch,” he observed.

Narine shared several recommendations for the government to consider, including a continued review of the national minimum wage. While sugar workers have secured $100,000, he noted that many others, particularly those in the informal sector, still require protection. He called for a minimum wage that reflects the true cost of a “dignified” life. He also urged enhanced price monitoring and targeted relief for basic food items, pointing out that rising costs for essentials such as flour, rice, and cooking oil place a heavy burden on working families.

Additionally, Narine advocated for accelerated access to affordable housing for low-income workers, emphasising that stable housing is essential for overall well-being. He further highlighted the challenges faced by rice farmers, including volatile market prices and the impacts of climate change, calling for continued government support through fair pricing, improved access to export markets, and the establishment of a Rice Workers Support Fund.

He also pointed out how thousands of domestic workers labour in homes, markets, and casual work without contracts, NIS (National Insurance Scheme), and sick leave and he applauded the government’s efforts to protect these workers.

Regarding oil in Guyana, Narine called for greater public disclosure of oil revenues, “not out of mistrust, but out of a shared desire for accountability,” noting that when workers see where the money goes, trust grows.

CCWU’s General Secretary, Sherwod Clarke spoke about the need to stand against discrimination in all its forms. He stated that the commitment to dignity and respect for workers must apply to every worker, without exception.

He expressed the union’s solidarity with lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender workers and neighbours, and highlighted its endorsement of the Guyana Together initiative, which calls for the repeal of outdated laws criminalising same-sex intimacy. “This outdated law is a stain on our country’s global reputation and continues to inflict real damage on gay and trans citizens. That is why today we are calling for the extension of non-discriminatory protection to create a stronger, more inclusive Prevention of Discrimination Act.”

Meanwhile, homage was paid at the rally to the Haymarket affair martyrs of 1886, who gave their lives for the eight-hour workday; to Hubert Nathaniel Critchlow, known as the father of trade unionism who first organised dockworkers; and to the sugar workers of 1948, including the Enmore Martyrs, along with those who were beaten, arrested, and blacklisted for simply demanding respect. Attention was also drawn to fallen workers of GAWU who died in workplace accidents, as well as those who retired into poverty.

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• FITUG, Labour Day March, May Day rally, oil wealth, Seepaul Narine

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