Teachers union calls for price controls

Last Updated on Thursday, 24 July 2025, 19:56 by Writer

Amid rising cost of living despite salary increases, the Guyana Teachers Union (GTU) on Thursday called for serious consideration to be given to the reintroduction of price controls.

“The time has come for serious discussions about price control in Guyana. We cannot continue to increase salaries only to have those increases stolen by unchecked price hikes,” the union said in a statement.

Guyana scrapped price controls in the late 1980s and early 1990s, as part of a shift from a socialist-oriented economy to market driven reforms that had been prescribed by an International Monetary Fund-led economic recovery programme.

In a statement, the GTU called for a system that protects the spending power of public servants and teachers. Such a mechanism, the union said, would allow families to see real benefits from the nation’s wealth rather than on paper and in speeches. “We need policies that regulate the cost of basic goods and services. We need a government that puts the people first, not profits,” the union added.

The GTU said high fuel prices could no longer be used as an explanation for the steep cost of goods and services because fuel prices in Guyana have been at their lowest in recent times. Citing the fact that transportation costs remain the same despite a drop in fuel prices, the union questioned whether the planned abolition of bridge tolls would lead to lower transportation costs or businesses would continue to charge the same rates while enjoying higher profits.

Against that backdrop, the GTU questioned how workers are expected to cope with the fact that the cost of living keeps rising faster than their earnings while planning for the future, investing in their children’s education, paying rent or mortgages, buying food and saving. “The truth is, many families are barely making ends meet. They live paycheck to paycheck. They borrow to survive. They suffer in silence.”

In January, 2025 a Demerara Waves Online News assessment of the basic cost of living for a single person in Georgetown tallied GY$148,824 except clothing, fragrances, sanitary pads, entertainment/recreation, bottled water, over-the-counter medicines and transportation to a place of worship. If the worker is a single parent of one nursery school child, the overall monthly household expenditure will jump to a minimum of GY$164,324, that is GY$15,500 more. If the person is a parent, the budget also does not include confectionery and other treats, story books and toys.

Latest available data from the New Guyana Marketing Corporation also shows that the average price of food items has increased by over 75% in the past four years.