JTA political training ground

THE EDITOR, Sir:

WITH THE close 48-40 vote against the latest wage offer from the Government towards teachers, and the anger that has elicited i n the ranks of the Jamaica Teachers’ Association (JTA), it is now time for the ‘real’ teachers in this country to break away from the JTA and form a separate group to negotiate with the Ministry of Finance.

The JTA no longer represent the view and wishes of the majority of the island’s teachers. The manner in which the JTA has operated over the years with different administrations should make it abundantly clear to rank- and-file teachers that it is more about making political statements than standing up for what teachers really want. In the words of one teacher: “We are being used as guinea pigs in a war we know nothing about.”

The JTA has proven time and time again to be a training ground for the political ambitions of its presidents who have gone on to serve in one way or the other as part of the People’s National Par ty. It ’s a PNP-minded union and not a teacher union looking out for the best interest of its members. It’s time the rank and file members realise that.