Salary increases for teachers: Education Ministry, GTU to continue talks on Thursday

The Education Ministry and the Guyana Teachers Union (GTU) will meet again on Thursday to further negotiate what GTU terms a proposal for salary increases for teachers.
When both parties last met on July 26, the government proposed a seven per cent across-the-board increase for 2024 and 6 per cent increase for 2025 and 2026.
GTU had outrightly rejected this counter-proposal, given that it had proposed a 39.6 per cent increase for 2024 and 30 per cent increase for 2025 and 2026 a few days prior.
As a result, they are now scheduled to meet on Thursday to discuss a way forward.
In an invited comment, the union’s General Secretary Coretta McDonald reiterated that the members of the Guyana Teachers Union are not satisfied with the current proposal.
McDonald explained that GTU is hoping that the ministry followed-up on its request to revise the said proposal.
She said that the union will push for a higher salary increase for the nation’s teachers.
Discussions between the ministry and the union on the new 2024-2026 multi-year agreement commenced on July 11 after months of prolonged industrial action by teachers.

Prior to this, GTU had been pushing for a backdated collective bargaining agreement, however, the government, through the Education Ministry has maintained that it is fully prepared to work on a multi-year agreement from 2024 and not 2019 as being initially demanded by the union. The GTU subsequently recanted and agreed to negotiate from 2022 onwards – a proposal that was also rejected by the government.
The Union has also proposed a performance-based incentive of two per cent per annum to be paid to eligible teachers during the period of the multi-year agreement, with effect from January 1, 2024.
This is in addition to an annual health/risk allowance of $25,000, and a monthly internet/mobile data allowance of $10,000 to be paid to all teachers.
Moreover, the body is seeking a termly school transportation grant of $150,000 in the case of those operating on the coastland and $300,000 for hinterland/riverain schools or alternately a mode of transport (boat, ATV etc.) to offset the cost of teachers travelling to attend meetings, workshops, orientation sessions, or emergencies at school. (G1)