By Erica James-King Staff ReporterWESTERN BUREAU:
THE SUGAR Company of Jamaica yesterday assured the 200 Hampden sugar estate workers who have been made jobless by its closure last week, that it will be making all redundancy payments due to them before March 31, 2003.
The commitment was given at a meeting between representatives of the SCJ and the University and Allied Workers' Union, which represents the workers. The employees will receive some $66 million in redundancy payments.
At yesterday's meeting, the company made available to the union, details of the redundancy payments calculated for each worker.
"We will be studying that list to ensure that the payments slated for each worker is in keeping with their required years of service, as well as calculated in keeping with each former worker's basic pay at the time the factory closed its doors," Aston Johnson, UAWU organiser, told The Gleaner.
Asked by The Gleaner the nature of the latest consultations between the SCJ and Hampden, Mr. Johnson said the union had placed its concerns on the table based on the fact that the positions of field workers were not made redundant.
"We made the company aware that we are not pleased that one group of workers has been made redundant, while another group has not been given a chance to start afresh. However, the company has insisted that there is nothing legally binding, in forcing its hands to make the field workers redundant," he said.
The company and the UAWU are to meet again on January 10 for further talks on the redundancy and to update the union on the progress on the sugar housing project for Hampden employees, which was announced two years ago.
Also, there is consensus between the UAWU and SCJ that the consultancy firm, Trevor Hamilton and Associates, will arrange workshops for the displaced workers, aimed at preparing them for "life after redundancy".
The Hampden sugar factory closed its doors on December 19, in the wake of an announcement on December 10 in the House of Representatives by Agriculture Minister, Roger Clarke, that the Government intended to close it down and save more than $400 million this year.
Field workers have been clamouring for their jobs to be made redundant.
The Hampden Cane Farmers' Association has been lobbying for the Government to keep Hampden open.
With the factory's closure, there are plans to increase the use of the distillery and the cane lands, Mr. Clarke said. The estate is to be restructured and reorganised to concentrate on rum production and cane-farming. Some 1,000 hectares will be planted in cane over the next two years.
