Stemming from a more than two-hour long meeting between the Guyana Teachers’ Union (GTU) and the Education Ministry on Wednesday afternoon, teachers are being assured that they can now sleep well, as “fruitful” discussions were harnessed, where a “matrix of figures” for teachers is now being promised to be presented by Friday.
As smiling representatives walked out of the meeting held at the Ministry’s 26 Brickdam, Georgetown office, tight-lipped officials would only say that “new information was provided that was not discussed nor considered prior to the offers made earlier.”
When asked what was the “new information”, GTU General Secretary Coretta McDonald explained, “Well, of course we would want to have all of our teachers benefiting from whatever the increase is going to be so… we would have had promotions and so with promotions come new salaries and so those are all new information”.
Further, she noted that the Union is looking forward to having a final resolution to the teachers’ wages dispute by Friday, when the two sides will again meet to reveal the “matrix of figures” for teachers. The Ministry will stand the responsibility of presenting this figure, the GTU said.
Meanwhile, the Education Minister described the new salaries for teachers as “a work in progress”. “If we may say, it’s a work in progress, and so the new information is nothing specific that we would wish to share at this point in time. A lot of what has to be sorted out requires the interaction of both parties so that we can resolve the issue.”
Earlier on Wednesday, President David Granger had announced that he was shocked by the Union’s move to reject the increase being offered.
On Monday, a new offer of a 10 per cent increase for 2016 and eight per cent for 2018 was put forward by the head of state.
The GTU had also said in a social media post that, “…an offer of G$350 million is made to settle debunching for the period 2011-2018. Teachers to be placed in scales as of January 2019. Payments for debunching and 2018 will be made in December while retroactive 2016 increase will be made in January 2019 if agreed.”
Monday’s intervention by President David Granger came after Opposition Leader Bharrat Jagdeo advised that the Head of State take a stand on the impasse regarding teachers’ salaries.
Initially the GTU was asking for a 40 per cent increase and were set for arbitration after calling off a nationwide strike on September 6. The Union was however ready to return to the streets after the Education Ministry and the Union were unable to agree on an arbitration panel.
This was after conciliator, Labour Minister Keith Scott, unilaterally appointed a Chairman who was introduced as University of Guyana Professor Leyland Lucas.
The last nationwide teachers’ strike took effect on August 27 during schools’ pre-term activities and lasted for a little under two weeks, as the Ministry gave into pressure and agreed to arbitration on September 6, 2018.
The Union has been clamouring for the Education Ministry to honour a proposal for a 40 per cent increase in salary for 2016, 45 per cent in 2017, 50 per cent in 2018, 50 per cent in 2019 and 50 per cent in 2020 be granted to all categories of teachers/educators. (Davina Ramdass)
