Indian quarry workers were required to pay company if fired

Last Updated on Monday, 18 May 2026, 21:21 by Writer

The Indian nationals, who came to Guyana to work at a quarry owned by the India-headquartered EKAA HRIM Earth Resources Management, were required to pay the company US$3,000 if fired for breaches and poor performance, according to one of the contracts seen by Demerara Waves Online News.

The contract states that the company can fire the worker without notice for providing false or misleading information, breach of the code of conduct and continued unsatisfactory performance following two written warnings.

“Upon termination, employee is liable to reimburse the employer a management cost equivalent to US$3,000 as costs incurred in hiring, training and other administrative expenses,” the contract states.

On top of paying that amount, the dismissed worker would have to pay his own travel expenses.

Under the seven-page contract, an employee will have to pay EKAA HRIM Earth Resources Management US$5,000 if he leaves the job before the end of the 24-month contract period.

The company says that amount of money is to cover expenses for hiring, training and other administrative expenses.

Similarly, the company will not pay return travel expenses.

Should a worker abscond, the employer terminates the contract and quashes all benefits, including unpaid salary, vacation leave and bonuses.

Additionally, the worker will have to pay an abandonment fee of US$5,000 for breach of contract or face legal action if unpaid within 14 days.

After Opposition Leader Azruddin Mohamed and a team of his party executives went to the area over the weekend and spoke with workers about their grievances, the Minister of Labour Keoma Griffith on Monday said he intervened with the Indian High Commissioner and secured the company’s return of the passports to the 38 employees.

The Ministry of Labour said investigators would travel to the quarry location to investigate the allegations of poor working conditions, unfair treatment, labour and occupational safety and health violations.

The joint team of officers from the Ministry of Labour and Manpower Planning, Guyana Police Force, Trafficking In Persons Unit under the Ministry of Home Affairs and other relevant authorities will make inquiries and assess the situation, the ministry said.

The EKAA HRIM Earth Resources Management’s employment contract also bars workers from defaming or falsely accusing other employees or the company failing which their employment can be terminated without notice or severance pay.

Additionally, the contract allows the employer to take legal action to recover damages, including reputational damage, caused by defamatory statements.

Based on the contract, EKAA HRIM Earth Resources Management can change its rules and policies from time to time at management’s discretion and should there be a conflict, the employment contract and the signed code of conduct will take precedence.

Unauthorised disclosure of the terms of the contract, including salary and benefits, to external parties will amount to a breach of contract, the document states.

Workers also agreed to work 12 hours daily Monday to Saturday, possibly on public holidays, non-working days or emergencies “at the discretion of the employer.”

EKAA HRIM Earth Resources Management’s contract states that salary includes regular pay and overtime totalling around 12 hours daily or 72 hours weekly.

The company makes it clear that overtime is only for work done beyond the daily and weekly hours after achieving production targets.

Further, extra hours worked to achieve targets caused by external factors, such as weather, will not qualify for overtime.

The company stipulates that workers, who do not meet production targets, can suffer from reduced salaries. “Failure to meet targets may result in a salary review and potential adjustments,” the document states.

EKAA HRIM Earth Resources Management quarry, which sits on 1,089 acres of lease land, with a quarrying pit of 30 acres, was commissioned by President Irfaan Ali in September 2023.

The lease is valid for 15 years, with the option to renew at the end of that period.

The company hopes to invest up to US$20 million into the project.

“As part of our sustainable planning initiative, we are planning to power the entire mining area with solar power which will be established here in the near future, it’s also in line with the low carbon development strategy of the country,” Chairman of EKAA, Saju Bhaskar was quoted then as saying.

“We have (spent) a lot of resources over the last three years in importing quarry materials because one of the things is that, because of the demand and supply the prices went up and we had to seek to bring in imports. We have nearly a couple million tons now. And still, this is not enough to keep pace with the type of development that is taking place and this is just the initial phase of development”, Dr Ali had said.