THE Teaching Service Commission (TSC) has abandoned initial thoughts of appealing a court decision which scrapped its method of promoting teachers and has proceeded in earnest in getting a list ready for early next year.In July 2015 the Guyana Teachers Union (GTU) had filed an injunction against the TSC objecting to the publication of the final list of teachers promoted in 2015. The injunction was granted by then Chief Justice (ag) Ian Chang, preventing the TSC from issuing and publishing promotions for 2015. The matter was brought to the High Court by Attorney-at-law Roysdale Forde who represented the GTU.

The union felt that the TSC had strayed from its rules and regulations in the way it processed promotions. The commission was using the assessments given by education officers, head-teachers, Regional Education Officers and not the provision of the Rule Book governing the Teaching Service Commission to promote teachers. This, the union felt was flawed as officials and head teachers who had personal grouse with teachers had deliberately given skewed comments which stifled their promotion.

Last week the matter was decided in the High Court when Chief Justice, Yonette Cummings-Edwards ruled that the procedure used by the TSC was flawed and ought not to have been used. In an immediate reaction GTU President, Mark Lyte said the way has now been cleared for teachers to be promoted based on their years of service, age and achievements. “Here it is a Judge had to correct her (TSC Chairman, Leila Ramson) that what you and your commission would have done, it was not properly done so you need to re-do it now,” GTU General Secretary, Coretta Mc Donald told reporters after the ruling.

During the run up to the court case the GTU had said that it had no confidence in the commission or its chairperson. The union had called for a complete review of all the applications made; but TSC was only willing to look at specific ones. The union had also charged that it had enough evidence to prove that many eligible teachers were not promoted for various reasons and that due process was not followed. According to the union the commission had been making decisions on the basis of “comments” penned by respective Regional Education Officers (REDO) and officials at the Education Ministry on the application forms when teachers apply for promotion.

Although some teachers may have scored the highest possible points, they were refused promotion because of reports from regional officers or head teachers that they needed more supervision, while persons with fewer points were promoted instead. The TSC receives the form from the central ministry and acts on just the comments instead of the points, which is an accumulation of the years of experience and qualifications of a teacher. So the TSC basically deviated from the rules,” the GTU had contended.