…Harmon says gov’t will continue to engage GTU

AMIDST strike action by the teachers across the country, Minister of State, Joseph Harmon has said that teachers will only be satisfied if the Guyana Teachers Union agrees to engage the Government.

“No one benefits from arguing in the street…we will continue to engage the union to find a common ground and have the teachers in the classrooms,” said the minister in an invited comment on Tuesday.

He believes that the teachers belong in the classroom so Government will work to ensure that they (the teachers) return. The industrial action comes after the parties failed to arrive at a consensus primarily on the government’s proposed $700M to facilitate salary increases and $200 million to address de-bunching for 2018.

GTU believes that the proposed figure from the government would not be sustainable or acceptable, since it would amount to an increase by GY$5,000 per teacher for one year.

The union instead proposed an across-the-board increase in salary of 40 per cent for 2016 and incremental increases of five per cent in 2017, 2018, 2019 and 2020, respectively, to be granted to all categories of teachers and teacher educators. Although the GTU and the government engaged in follow-up deliberations on the matter, the union had refused to budge from its proposal. Lyte, however, contended that 40 per cent is not the union’s final decision and they, instead, would be willing to negotiate downwards.

Veteran Trade Unionist, Lincoln Lewis said the only way to resolve the issue is to continue the collective bargaining process. “The best thing to do is go to arbitration and have it resolved…When an arbitration happens the agreement will be final and binding; based on what the panel decides that is what you will get,” he said.

President David Granger has said his government is actively searching for alternative sources of finance to meet the needs of teachers. He had also warned against industrial action, stating that there is no need for such extreme measure.

In responding to a series of questions on the issue, President Granger gave his word that the Social Protection Ministry is working with the Ministry of Finance to determine whether additional funds can be secured. “The Ministry of Social Protection, which has responsibility for labour and industrial relations, is in touch with the Ministry of Finance to see whether additional funds could be found from other heads of government expenditure in order to move closer to the goal of providing sufficient funds to the teachers,” the President told reporters at a news conference on Friday at the Ministry of the Presidency.

Hinting that finances may very well have to come from funds allocated to other ministries for various developmental projects and initiatives, President Granger said such was the case when monies had to be secured to pay sugar workers their severance earlier this year. In January, the government had cut ministerial budgets in an effort to pay thousands of sugar workers their severance pay. During the initial stages of negotiations with the GTU, the government, through the Education Ministry, proposed $700M to facilitate salary increases, and $200M to address de-bunching for 2018. But the GTU rejected the offer, and instead counter-proposed an across-the-board increase in salary of 40 per cent for 2016 and incremental increases of five per cent in 2017, 2018, 2019 and 2020, respectively, to be granted to all categories of teachers and teacher educators.

Reiterating that his government has been continuously trying to meet the needs of teachers, President Granger said it was following deliberations at the level of Cabinet on the report submitted by a High- Level Task Force that the initial sum of $700M was proposed as an increase in salary for teachers.