The Guyana Sugar Corporation (GuySuCo) has suspended operations at its two sugar estates in Berbice after workers protested against working in what they called an unhealthy environment due to their concerns about being put at risk for contracting the novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19).
General Secretary of the Guyana Agricultural and General Workers’ Union (GAWU) Seepaul Narine yesterday confirmed that the operations at the Albion and Blairmont estates have been suspended.
“We met with GuySuCo this morning and they said that there has been no burning or harvesting of sugar canes since yesterday [Sunday]. So suspension has been in effect since Sunday and will last for this week,” Narine pointed out before explaining that management of the company will reassess the decision at the end of that time.
Last week the union joined workers and called for the corporation to suspend its operations in the interest of workers’ safety. Workers had protested the conditions under which they are working in light of the local spread of COVID-19.
According to a GAWU release issued last Thursday, the union had written to GuySuCo pointing out that recently workers have been expressing their fear about contracting COVID-19. It added that this fear had “heightened” in recent days as the number of persons infected has risen with reports indicating that this number could climb even higher in the coming days.
The union has also asked that workers receive financial support during the suspension, calling for GuySuCo “to provide appropriate financial support to the beleaguered and hard-pressed sugar workers.” Towards this end, it urged the corporation “to approach its political bosses to access sufficient financial support to ensure that it can assist its workers in this crisis period.”
Narine yesterday said that the corporation has informed the union that the company’s finances do not allow for such measures.
The union, he said, asked for the recommendation to be forwarded to the government. As a result, the recommendation, Narine said, is currently with Minister of Agriculture Noel Holder.
Further, the union suggested that money for a retroactive pay rise, which the company had suggested be from January 2020, be used to pay workers.
“We are still in wages negotiation. While we accepted the increase, we were asking for it to be retroactive for January 2019 but they wanted it to be from January 2020. So we have not agreed on that but given the situation we are asking that they pay that retroactive money for 2020 and we will iron out the wages package as discussion continues,” he said.
The union and GuySuCo are expected to meet again for further discussions.
The union has said that while it acknowledges that GuySuCo has put several measures in place to allay workers’ concerns, these have not helped to sufficiently placate the workers’ fears. The union reminded GuySuCo that it is bound both by agreement and statute, among other things, to ensure that workers are protected from hazards, whether they are physical or biological. It further pointed out that workers have expressed anxieties about going to work as they seek to protect their and their families’ health and well-being at this time. It was against this background that the union urged the corporation to consider “a temporary cessation of operations.”
In the face of the coronavirus threat, GAWU urged all Guyanese to heed the warnings, follow the advice and take all and every precaution to stay safe. “We believe that should we embrace such measures, we can overcome the situation even more quickly and get back to our normal day-to-day lives,” it added.
