By Wendy James, Fresh Grad & Accounts Assistant
I still pinch myself when I think back to graduation day, diploma in hand, but bank balance still in the red from bus fare and late-night study snacks. I hustled through university studies, working shifts that paid me about GYD 120,000 a month. Now I’m in my first full-time accounting gig, pulling in GYD 145000, and yes, I’m grateful. But every time I scroll through Facebook or WhatsApp, I see flashy oil-party pictures and VIP selfies that make me wonder, where’s the success for the rest of us? Where’s the success for my mother, who works 12hr days as a security guard. Where’s the success for my uncles who are taxi drivers and day labourers working for $5000 a day?
My friends and I barely talked politics a year ago. “Dem ain’t for we,” we shrugged. But now, we’re beginning to tune in. Still, most of my friends say they do not intend to vote. My mum is die-hard coalition; me, I’m undecided. I just know that at this pay scale, I’m still squeezing planning for my own apartment and saving pennies for a used car. I do not know when I will achieve those goals. I’m also eyeing a piece of land, my mum says I should apply, and I plan to.
Imagine a Guyana where your effort in the office actually means you can pay rent, catch the minibus without worry, and finally upgrade from that slow desktop PC at home. No freebies, no back-door deals, just a fair shot so I can save for a car payment or a small apartment in Parika.
That’s what “better wages” means to me. It means real security when I look at my ATM receipt or scrape up funds to pay for my data bundle each month. It means I can look my friends in the eye and say, “I’ve earned this.” And trust me, when you’re punching numbers till midnite, that feeling matters.
Every week in this space, I’ll unpack what our leaders say about salaries, show you how to crunch the numbers yourself, and highlight real-life moves you can make, whether it’s applying for land, starting a side hustle, or voting for policies that raise our pay. If you’re tired of hearing about success you can’t afford, stick around. Let’s talk about how we achieve the Guyana we deserve, where hard work pays off, plain and simple.
