Field workers of the LBI sugar cultivation who are being coerced practically to be members of the Enmore Estate workforce demonstrated their opposition to such virtual unilateral and high-handed decision on (Thursday) August 11 and (today) August 12, 2016.
The cane cutters, shovelmen, weeders mainly females, fertilizing hands, cane planters and others numbering about 450 are demanding that they be allowed to work within the LBI cultivation so that their Union (the Guyana Agricultural and General Workers Union) and their shop stewards could address a number of issues with GuySuCo.
The Guyana Sugar Corporation Inc (GuySuCo), the workers insisted, must not demand they work under less favourable conditions as they would be required at Enmore Estate. According to a statement from the union (GAWU), a female worker, Sharon Smith, explained a few days ago that at LBI Estate a task work is priced at $2,875 and a similar task is priced at $2,675 at Enmore Estate. “Moreover, we cannot be oblivious to the long travelling distance between the two (2) estates that this decision entails,” the union stated.
GAWU said the workers have correctly observed that the 2,700 hectare LBI cultivation remain intact unlike the LBI operations namely:- the Field Workshop, Mill Dock, Field Lab, Stores, and Administrative Offices which were closed at the end of last month (July, 2016). In other words, their work at LBI has not become redundant.
On the other hand, the field workers of Enmore Estate are objecting to the manner their counterparts at LBI Estate are pushed over to their Estate. They also struck today to register their disagreement. They are seeking a meeting through their shop stewards and the Union’s Field Officer with the Management of the Estate to have some work issues addressed. The Estate Manager of Enmore Estate informed the Union’s Field Officer saying GuySuCo already made its decision. The Manager’s response indicates that the workers would not be granted a forum to represent their issues.
No dialogue, no meetings, the practice of upmanship need not be pursued at no time, and more especially at this time, when the industry is at a juncture which requires all the stakeholders to work co-operatively. The negative culture now being pursued by the Corporation is demotivating to the workforce.
