WESTMORELAND:
THE RECENT appointment of Mr. Livingstone Morrison as Chief Executive Officer of the Sugar Company of Jamaica (SCJ) has won the support of most players in the industry in western Jamaica. Strong support have come from the workers at the Frome Sugar Factory while the cane farming community said it will be giving guarded support to the new CEO.
Speaking with The Gleaner on Friday Astill Sangster, Chairman of the Western Cane Farmers Association, said, "We welcome him to the new job but hope he will grasp the opportunity to embark on the needed restructuring we have been proposing. The staffing and operation need urgent changes for maximum efficiency," he said.
From the Bustamante Industrial Trade Union (BITU) and National Workers Union (NWU)-- the two unions that represent the majority of workers at Frome, the largest entity in the SCJ chain -- came the word that they will be giving the new man at the helm their full co-operation which they say he will need to turn the limping sugar industry around.
"We must protect what we have and plan to move forward. This is a multimillion dollar industry and right now our livelihood is at stake. We welcome Mr. Morrison and are prepared to work with him," said Gladstone Holland of the BITU.
Mr. Preston Barnes the NWU's chief delegate told The Gleaner that the moral of workers at Frome is now very high and the mood is good which augers well for increased production of sugar. Mr. Morrison can count on our total support, he said.
However, Mr. Sangster sounded a word of warning to the new CEO. "He has very little time to put things in place to revive the dying sugar industry."
The cane farmers boss said one of the recommendations his association is proposing to change the operational structure of the industry is to group the factories into two entities. Frome, Long Pond and Holland into one and Monymusk, Bernard Lodge and the St. Thomas Estate into another. "These two operations will report separately to the CEO who will in turn report to the board who will then report to the ministry. This I'm sure will make the operations much more efficient," he argued.
While giving what he called guarded support to Mr. Morrison, the cane farmers chairman said he is nevertheless questioning whether the SCJ chairman Bank of Jamaica Governor Derrick Lattibeaudiere had not carefully looked at others within the industry with more experience and qualification in the workings of the business from whom the appointment of a new CEO could be made.
The Western Cane Farmers Association was most vocal in calling for the removal of Ambassador Derrick Heaven as CEO of the SCJ. Mr. Heaven now heads the Sugar Industry Authority of Jamaica. The new CEO had his first meeting with the staff and other industry interest at Frome on Tuesday.
