In the face of a request by the workers’ union that Guyana Power and Light (GPL) match the 7% increase being paid to public servants, the utility company’s Chief Executive Officer Bharrat Dindyal yesterday said it simply could not afford it.
“We don’t have money to pay an increase,” Dindyal told a press conference, where he disclosed that the company was operating at a deficit. “We can’t afford anything at all,” he added, when asked what could be given.
The announcement came as a shock to the National Association of Clerical, Commercial and Industrial Employees (NACCIE), which yesterday stated that its workers should not be punished for electricity theft losses — the main contributor to GPL operating at a deficit.
