| “The (sugar) industry is too important to our economy, and too much entangled with too many workers’ lives to perform too poorly,” was the deduction of First Vice President of the Federation of Independent Trade Unions of Guyana (FITUG), Komal Chand.Chand, as a result, has vocalised a proposal aimed at encouraging workers to take proactive action to revamp the state of the industry. He was at the time delivering remarks at the FITUG-hosted May Day Rally at the National Park onGAWU President,Adam Joseph Duhe Dolphins Jersey, Komal ChandWednesday last.According to Chand, who also holds the portfolio of President of the Guyana Agricultural and General Workers Union (GAWU), “as the union representing the largest segment of workers in the sugar industry, we have anxieties over the prolonged setback that it is faced with”.He said that while the union is grateful to the Government for its financial assistance and support to the sector, the time has come for collective action of the direct stakeholders to chart a path for the industry’s recovery.“From our standpoint the key problem of the industry is the inadequate supply of canes to the factories. This is not a problem that the industry’s long experiences and capabilities cannot handle, (but) it needs to identify where the breakdowns are in the fields, in every specific estate, and begin to apply the solution.”According to Chand, addressing this situation requires committed personnel to take charge of the required work, a move that must rely in a big way on the workers to bring to bear the practical experiences.Chand said GAWU will maintain the position that the industry can perform far better than it is doing now,cheap nfl jerseys, adding that with focused attention, sugar production in all likelihood can climb out of its five-year average of 250,Adrian Wilson Cardinals Jersey,000 to 300,000 and above.As such, the veteran Union executive lashed out at those he dubbed as “intruders”, who according to him, are “up to no good and are clearly seeking political mileage in their efforts to undermine GAWU. In their action they seek not to safeguard workers,Cheap Stitched Jerseys, but to destroy their unity and solidarity, the main pillars of workers’ strength.”Moreover, he emphasised the importance of workers remaining unified, even as he amplified his conviction that even as another Labour Day is celebrated, working people continue to remain divided.“This is an unsettling development in an otherwise proud history of the Guyanese working class. In our division we are weak, our individual struggles and our demands bring small fruit,NFL Jerseys Outlet, if any, and as we look around us, much is going on at the economic, political and social levels.”Chand said the developments that are “occurring today will impact on our lives tomorrow.” And given their strategic place in production and their numbers,Cheap Jerseys Online, workers, according to Chand, should demand a bigger say in the various developments around them. He is of the firm belief that workers should be able to influence policies but stressed that “we will only be heard if we speak with one voice. We need to influence the direction of our country, but we can be effective only if we do so together.” |
