Agriculture Minister Dr. Leslie Ramsammy has voiced his concern over the recent strike action taken by several Berbice sugar estate workers, due to delayed payment of their Annual Production Incentive (API).
Minister Ramsammy affirmed that the workers, who are attached to the Rose Hall estate, were educated by officials from the Guyana Sugar Corporation (GuySuCo) and their union, the Guyana Agricultural and General Workers’ Union (GAWU) that the API would be paid by March 16.
However, the sugar workers who numbered approximately 300; including labourers; weeders, planters, manure broadcasters and field workers, refused to work until their demands were met.
GuySuCo in a release today, highlighted that while the issue remains of grave concern, the corporation is finding it difficult to source additional short-term finance to support the workers’ demands.
The corporation indicated that the delay of the API was as a result of the late start of the first corporation lagging behind in its payment to creditors,” the release stated.
Minister Ramsammy cautioned that such disruption would significantly affect sugar production and the industry as a whole, as the corporation would find it difficult to reach its projected target of 265,000 tonnes by the end of the first crop for 2012.
“The disruptions in several estates over the weekend were short ones, and I am happy that the workers in most of the estates are back at work. As it relates to the API, while that should have been paid as soon as 2011 ended, an agreement was reached which would see them being paid shortly,” he said.
He acknowledged that improvement to GuySuCo’s financial position is heavily dependent on sugar production and the income of finance as a result of sale of the commodity and, has called on the remainder of striking workers to resume duty.