GuySuCo tells GAWU no pay increase again this year

Faced with a $16B loss last year, the Guyana Sugar Corporation (GuySuCo) yesterday told GAWU that there would be no increase in wages and salaries for 2016. This would be the second consecutive year that the cash-strapped and heavilyindebted corporation won’t be paying a wage hike, unprecedented in the recent history of the sugar industry.

There was no reaction yesterday from GAWU to the GuySuCo declaration of no increases but workers are likely to be incensed.

In the statement yesterday, GuySuCo said that it met with the Guyana Agricultural and General Workers Union (GAWU) on Wages, Salaries and Fringe Benefits for 2016. It noted that the first meeting was held on September 19, 2016 and a comprehensive financial, production and marketing presentation on the Corporation ‘s state was made to the Union. Additionally, there was a meeting with the Corporation Executives and all three Unions on September 29, 2016 where the Corporation’s financial and production forecasts up to the year 2025 were presented and examined.

GuySuCo noted that the union was advised at those meetings that the Corporation had made a loss of over $16 Billion in 2015; and that the projected loss for 2016 and 2017 would be almost $13 Billion and more than $12 Billion respectively. To cushion the impact of those losses, GuySuCo noted that the Government had provided a subsidy to the tune of $12 Billion in 2015 and $9 Billion in 2016. However, the Corporation was now seeking an additional $3.5 Billion to sustain its operations to the end of this year. It added that the union was also advised that in 2017, the Corporation would require a further subsidy of more than $18 Billion in the face of lower production and reduced market prices, resulting in lower revenue.

“In light of the above grim financial challenges, the Corporation informed the Union and its delegation at a meeting today October 19, 2016, that it did not have the monies required and was unable to award an increase on Wages and Salaries for 2016.

“The Union and their representatives raised several matters pertaining to the Corporation’s capital investment programme, future diversification plans, and wage increases, among others which the Corporation’s delegation had referred to earlier.

“The Corporation on the other hand enquired whether there would be any more strikes, since it was a requirement that the Union provided the Corporation with due notice of strike action. This would allow for better planning by managers to avoid wastage of canes, since if the canes were burnt and not sent to the factory within a specific time period, they would obviously be too stale to grind. The Union’s response was the intention of the Union was no business of GuySuCo. The Corporation finds this attitude hardly one for fostering better relationship between the parties”, GuySuCo stated.

The Corporation said it is in the middle of the Second Crop which has been affected negatively by the prolonged dry weather in the First Crop. It said it aims to take full opportunity of the good weather in this crop as the past few weeks was most appropriate for harvesting.

It lamented that due to the strike action on October 17, 2016 by GAWU, six factories were not in operation.

Sugar losses across the industry resulting from the one day strike alone were approximately 202 tonnes, the corporation reported. This is due primarily to stale canes. However, sugar loss due to total opportunity time, is approximately 1,500 tonnes, GuySuCo said.

“The Corporation is disappointed that GAWU is not putting the business first and is not providing the leadership required to encourage the employees to fulfil their roles and responsibilities to the Corporation so that they can obtain the full benefits of this second crop in terms of increased incentives and other benefits” GuySuCo added.