Mass departure of Venezuelan migrants could worsen labour shortage, says PSC chair

Credit: Third World

A potential mass departure of Venezuelans from Guyana could deepen the country’s existing labour shortages if migrants choose to return home, the chairman of the Private Sector Commission (PSC) said.

Captain Gerry Gouveia Jr warned that Guyana, which has seen an influx of Venezuelan migrants entering its workforce in recent years amid political and economic instability in neighbouring Venezuela, may face further disruptions in key sectors. The labour issue has been a persistent challenge across agriculture, construction, hospitality and other industries, he said.

“We already know that there’s a labour issue in Guyana. We just cannot find enough people to do the work. Now, a lot of the labor may re‑migrate back to Venezuela. So these are some of the challenges and disruptions that I see that we will face, just in the sense that we’re already struggling with labour and cargo uplift,” Gouveia said in an interview on Ignite News Insights.

Gouveia also warned that sectors heavily dependent on imports could face difficulties as trade patterns shift. “Any industry that is labour intensive –services, hospitality, construction and mining and so on. We may see some labour impacts on those industries. Any industry that is heavily dependent on imports, whether that’s your supermarkets, whether that is your supplies to offshore. Basically, if our business, our industry is dependent on importing specifically from the US, those trade routes are now going to be split. That was once all Guyana.

It’s going to be split between Guyana and Venezuela. So while those are challenges, I think that if we look at them as opportunities, then we can start getting into the next phase of business as Guyanese companies,” he said.
Gouveia highlighted the need for companies to consider diversifying both labour and supply chains amid the evolving regional situation. “I think it’s diversifying those supply chains, whether that’s a labor supply chain or a cargo supply chain. I think that those are going to be the two areas that they need to start diversifying. So maybe instead of, for example, if you’re bringing everything out of Miami, start looking at other sources of import,” the PSC chairman explained.

Vice President Bharrat Jagdeo has previously acknowledged labour shortages in Guyana and outlined steps to cushion the effects, including policy measures aimed at managing foreign worker flows and boosting local employment, though specifics remain under review.
Guyana’s migrant workforce has grown alongside the country’s rapidly expanding economy, with observers noting that movements related to Venezuela’s political climate could influence labour dynamics on both sides of the border.