GTU now willing to negotiate salary increases for teachers from 2022-2025

– Manickchand maintains negotiations will continue only when teachers return to classrooms

General Secretary of the Guyana Teacher’s Union (GTU) Coretta McDonald has confirmed that the union is prepared to compromise and begin negotiation on an agreement that would cover the years 2022 to 2025.
According to McDonald, this proposal was presented to the Government through the Education Ministry during conciliations talks, which recently ended in deadlock.
The GTU has been pressing for its outstanding 2019 to 2023 proposal to be examined and negotiated first before moving on to this year, but it was noted that the agency was always willing to comprise.
Guyana Times understands that the 2022 to 2025 agreement would have been dealt with by both parties, whereas the union drafts an agreement for 2022 and 2023 and the Government drafts the 2024 to 2025 portion.
McDonald said this proposal among others has been turned down by the Ministry.
“GTU has made several offers to the Ministry of Education. We were prepared to look at 2022, 2023, 2021, 2023. They said no, we said okay, we are prepared to look at 2022 and 2023 while you (the Ministry) look at 2024 and 2025. So, we have two years and you (the Ministry) have your two years. They threw that one out,”.
She reiterated that GTU will not call off the strike until a reasonable offer, which caters to the welfare of teachers is made.
“And again, if the Ministry of Education and by extension the government, if they are interested in the welfare of teachers, and more so in the education of our children, good sense should prevail. And say to them, let’s compromise, let’s come and meet each other halfway. But the Ministry and by extension the government is bent on bullying and using all kinds of tactics of intimidation to our teachers and driving fear into them.”
On the other hand, the President of GTU is adamant that the Education Ministry should show its seriousness and agree to negotiate from 2022.
“if the union is ready to compromise on some of those back years, the Government has got to be prepared to compromise on its position. But all we are hearing is that the union must compromise and not the other side, and it is unfair to workers of this country to be asked through their union to compromise for five years when there is no compromise on the other side. I would say this now, if the Government is prepared to take two years – 2022 and 2023 – and we go with 2024, and 2025, then we can have a four-year agreement ASAP, if the Government is prepared to go with that. We are prepared to give up some of the years under the proposal that we submitted. Is the Government prepared to go back and compromise, rather than hold its position to say 2024 and no more?” Lyte told New Source.
He also stated that while they understand that the children are suffering the Ministry and the Government have got to take responsibility.
“This strike should have ended a long time ago. And the Government with the capacity to end it, is not making the right moves.”
One day ago, Education Minister, Priya Manickchand related that her Ministry is prepared and ready to continue engaging the Guyana Teachers Union but the teachers must return to the classrooms.
“We are ready, and we have said very clearly the minute that you are ready to honour the agreement that you signed that says once conciliation begins, the teachers, the membership of the union, will return to work in a state of normalcy, and there is no gun to our head saying pay 20% before we begin talking, we are ready to talk. It was we, who initiated this conversation that has been left hanging. The union seems very happy to do lives on Facebook and conversations and group meetings, and I am not sure how that is fulfilling this calling that their membership has collectively, which is to advance the Education of the children in their care”, Manickchand told another section of the press.
The Guyana Teachers Union (GTU) resumed strike action across the country after talks between the union and the Education Ministry broke down.
The Union had requested a 20 per cent across-the-board increase for teachers before they return to the classrooms. This request was shut down by the ministry.