GTU President Colin Bynoe signs the new teachers’ pact as Education Minister Shaik Baksh looks on
A new agreement between the government (MoE) and the Guyana Teachers’ Union (GTU) will see teachers receiving a five per cent across-the-board increase in their salaries for the next five years.
The new five-year pact was signed on Monday, April 25th, and will expire in 2015. It also caters for a one per cent differential in emoluments to correct the situation regarding salaries of long-serving teachers and those of new recruits to the teaching profession. This component of the agreement is valued at Gy$50 million.
A committee would be established by May 31, and is expected to report on “de-bunching” experienced teachers from new recruits. “Government is committed to putting in approximately one per cent of the teachers’ wage bill to commence these rectifications of the salary structure, which is equivalent to $50 million,” Education Minister Shaik Baksh stated. Teachers who have improved their qualifications will also continue to receive incentives.
Baksh hailed the agreement as “remarkable”, while noting that it will boost the confidence of Guyana’s teachers, who continue to work very hard to reach the benchmarks set by government. Speaking at a press conference on Tuesday, Baksh announced that the benefits and other incentives constituting the agreement outweigh the salary increase.
In the new package for teachers, uniform allowances will be increased above Gy$6000, while the duty-free concession will be reviewed within one year to explore the possibility of including other categories of teachers in this benefit. At present, only head teachers with a minimum of five years of service benefit from this duty-free concession. The Revolving Housing Fund, which currently stands at Gy$200 million, should be finalised no later than May, ensuring that teachers benefit. For each of the five years in the new agreement, $40 million will be added to that project.
Teachers’ will also be given priority to own a home, as some 100 of them will be given house lots each year. As a means of encouraging more trained teachers to relocate to rural regions, each teacher, whether in riverine or hinterland community, along with their spouses and two of their children below eighteen years of age, will be provided with air/ bus fares each school term to travel back to the coastal region. This is in addition to a Gy$30,000 monthly incentive for rent that will be given to those teachers who volunteer to teach in these communities but have no place of abode. There will also be a 50 per cent increase in the current rate for hardlying and station allowances for teachers in rural communities. This aspect of the package exceeds some Gy$60M each year. There will also be an increase in the remote areas’ incentives, for which government allocates some Gy$83M each year.
Speaking after the signing of the pact, Baksh said the non- salary benefits have increased in the new agreement, and will help to improve the livelihoods of teachers nationwide. GTU President Colin Bynoe lauded the agreement, noting that it is a step in the right direction. He explained that the agreement will see teachers deriving more from the profession while improving their livelihoods at all levels. Byone expressed gratitude for government’s concurrence in addressing the matter of ‘debunching’, since it has been a major issue for many years.
“It is not fair to know that one teacher would have been on the job for ten years, then suddenly a new one comes and he/she is paid the same salary,” he stated. He thinks debunching will give added motivation to teachers to stay in the profession, and to some extent it will lower the teacher migration rate. “But where we are excited is to know… about the importance of teachers in Maths and Science, and the fact that scope will now be given to teachers to pursue studies in these areas and at the same time be eligible for scholarships. (It) is a proud achievement,” Bynoe stressed. The GTU president also pointed out that the house lot and the housing loan projects are important incentives, which will encourage teachers to do their best and to help to retain them for a long time.
