With Rose Hall layoffs, fears become reality for sugar workers, businesses

Rose Hall sugar workers yesterday protested outside of the Auchlyne Primary School, Corentyne over the layaoff of 400 of their number by GuySuCo this week. The target of their protests was Prime Minister Moses Nagamootoo who was at an event at the school.

Dreading expected layoffs from the Rose Hall sugar estate, driver Kumar Ghanpat, 34, worries that if he loses his job, he will have to pull his three children from school.

“I studying me… children. I does work hard to send them to school because I want them get a education and do good in life, but if me ain’t get job they have to come out school. I don’t know what gone happen yet,” Ghanpat, whose children are 10, eight and four years, stressed, while fighting back tears yesterday.

Ghanpat, of Number Two Village, East Canje, is one of hundreds of workers who face redundancy as the Guyana Sugar Corporation (GuySuCo) moves forward with plans to close the estate.