Give the President a chance to deliver on his promises

The Ministry of Education (MoE) says emphatically that they have been involved in the process of negotiations with the Guyana Teachers’ Union (GTU) when they suddenly aborted the process and called a strike. The GTU did not wait to exhaust the collective bargaining procedure. Both the country’s Labour Minister, Joseph Hamilton, and Attorney General and Minister of Legal Affairs, Anil Nandlall refer to the GTU’s strike not only as illegal, but it also represents a “breach of faith.” The Vice President notes that the last meeting with the GTU and MoE occurred on January 31, 2024, and it was agreed then that they will meet every third Wednesday in succeeding months to address outstanding demands of the GTU.

Well-known social commentator and accountant Mr. Lallbachan Ram has come to the assistance of the GTU and lent his support for the strike. He has gone further to chide President Irfaan Ali for not intervening to resolve the strike. This perceptive critic has allowed the context and perspective to fracture his usually coherent thinking. The President must consider not only the teachers’ working conditions but also the entire public sector workforce of over 54,000. Knowing that there were ongoing negotiations up to 1/31/24, the President says the strike is “unconscionable,” since he has been working tirelessly in association with the Ministry of Education to address the issues affecting teachers. It is noted by the MOE that they have already met 60% of the GTU’s demands and were in continuous negotiations to address most of the remaining ones when the GTU called the strike.

Mr. Lallbachan Ram took aim at the apparent dereliction of responsibility of other Unions in not submitting their annual reports to the relevant authorities in the expectation that this would neutralize the aberrations of the GTU. The GTU did not submit their annual reports to the Deeds and Commercial Registry since 2004, and failed to provide annual audit reports since 1989. Mr. Ram states that Naacie, which he aligns with the PPP/C government, did

not produce annual financial reports to the Auditor General. This assertion was debunked by a top Naacie official: “Ram needs to check his facts. Naacie returns are up to date as at 2022, and the 2023 report is due in March by which time we will again be up to date. What is outstanding is the Audited statements which are with the Auditor General from 2015 for which we have no control.” Mr. Ram’s rationale follows a bizarre logic: “it’s like absolving a person for committing a robbery because another person also committed a similar robbery and was not charged!”

Let us return to the teachers’ strike and examine some facts. First, the per capita cost for teaching students at government schools is more than twice that at private schools. Second, the PPP/C government has given teachers a pay raise of over 30% in 3 years and has promised further assessment within the next two years. The Vice President says that since assuming office in 2020 to the end of 2023 they have increased the total allocation for payment of teachers’ salaries by 61.4% (from $24.4 billion in 2020 to $39.4 billion). The teachers’ salaries represent an extraordinarily high proportion (1/3) of the total salaries bill for the entire government workforce covering all sectors. Specific actions include the movement of graduate teachers to top of their scales and who were also given an additional allowance for their BA/BSc, MA/MSc, and PhD degrees. Additionally, Hinterland teachers were given an incentive of $20,000 per month while 4,000 teachers have been awarded scholarships to upgrade their academic credentials. Designated teachers who would attain the age of 52 will receive the duty-free car allowance.

Third, the PPP/C government has granted teachers and other workers several cost of living (COL) relief measures (totaling about $300 billion based on JC

Bhagwandin’s statistical analysis). The significance of this COL amount is expressed as the equivalent to 38.4% of the 2023 national budget amount. Fourth, the average monthly salary of Guyana teachers is not $(US) 600 as stated by a union member but rather $(US) 1,120 (We just divide the total salary bill ($39.4 billion) by the number of teachers (14,087). While increases have been granted to teachers, there has been no discussion on how these increases and more to come would result in better academic outcomes. There is still poor academic performance in Math and Science (40% failure rate). To aggravate this situation, it has been reported that teachers have been absent from classrooms 30% of the time. If this proportion is correct, it is a damning indictment of the system including the GTU!

Linking salary increase with academic performance is one issue but another critical consideration is “sustainability.” The government must determine if salary increases and benefits are sustainable over the long term (10 years and beyond). Oil resources will be depleted, and revenues will drop sharply. This (oil resource) is a subject for another time. Finally, the Headmistress of Bishop’s Secondary School spoke eloquently about the willingness of the Minister of Education and her CEO to address the needs of teachers in a timely manner and how they are readily approachable. She does not feel that the strike was right. The opinions of the Headmistress coincide with those of her colleague Headmaster of a School on the Essequibo Islands. These (opinions) resonate well with most teachers: 60% of them defied the GTU order to strike and are on the job. Others on strike must urgently re-evaluate their position. The President has asked for patience, and you must give him a chance because he is action oriented and delivers on promises.