Normalcy, safety not guarantee in schools amid strike action
Government employed teachers are at odds with the Ministry of Finance over its latest compensation package proposed.
The Jamaica Teachers’ Association (JTA), the union that represents some 22,000 educators islandwide, yesterday, rejected the latest offer on the table after majority of its delegates voted against the deal at a meeting held at the MICO University College.
In the aftermath of this decision many principals have issued notices advising parents to assess the situation before deciding to send their child out to schools as many teachers intend on staging sick-outs or sit-ins in protest.
In a notice to parents this morning, the Marlie Mount Primary and Infant School cautioned that “normalcy cannot be guaranteed” today and tomorrow as teachers become increasingly restive.
“To ensure your child’s safety, please exercise your parental responsibility,” the notice stated. “There is no guarantee that safety can be secured for your child/ward should they be sent to school on these days.”
Marlie Mount is the latest state institution in the Old Harbour region to join the protest movement happening across the island.
On Tuesday Old Harbour Primary asked parents to collect students by midday because “dissatisfied” teachers are engaged in a sit-in. Their stance remains the same.
And the situation is similar at the Old Harbour High School in the last 48 hours with the school noting that the protest action of its teachers has “intensified”.
“Our academic staff continues to express displeasure with the proposed wage package and therefore remains restive,” it stated in an advisory to parents and guardians. “We are therefore asking you to determine your child’s attendance to school” and “sorry for any inconvenience caused.”
Finance Minister Dr Nigel Clarke told the nation in Parliament during his Budget Presentation that roughly $12 billion has been set aside in retroactive pay for teachers and this is available for payout by March 31, the end of the fiscal year, once the teachers accept its latest offer.
In a quite bizarre chest move, Dr Clarke has also indicated that this $12 billion will not be available in the next financial year starting April 1 as no provision was made to retroactively compensate teachers in the 2023/24 budget.
The Finance Ministry is yet to publish an official document outlining their proposal to the teachers. However, one unofficial document being circulating in the public domain indicates that the average teacher is set to receive approximately $214,000 in gross monthly pay.
Under the revised compensation review for civil servants, the government is proposing a 20% increase on teacher’s salary over the next three years, while discontinuing the practice of special allowances in most instances.
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