Teachers at government primary, secondary, and tertiary schools are protesting, following the advice of their union, over the lack of retroactive pay.
Though they have shown up at school, they have decided to put down their chalk and dusters.
Sharon Kelsick, General Secretary of the Antigua and Barbuda Teachers Union, says that the protest will persist until all teachers receive their overdue payments.
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TEACHERS TAKE INDUSTRIAL ACTION
Thousands of teachers across the island are now staging a sit-in.
Following a meeting between the Antigua & Barbuda Union of Teachers (A&BUT) and its membership earlier Wednesday, the body has decided to take industrial action.
The rationale stems from the nonpayment of hundreds of thousands of dollars owed to hundreds of teachers who are owed retroactive salaries between 2019 and 2021.
According to A&BUT officials, there have been several moving deadlines for payment without action.
There was a meeting between the Union and Ministry of Education officials Tuesday and teachers agreed the terms submitted by the Education Ministry officials remain untenable.
A&BUT General Secretary, Sharon Kelsick, confirms the teachers will be taking action until the outstanding amounts have been paid in full.
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They don’t care. Their children go to private schools. They make sure that these schools get all their text books from the Government while the so call underachieving government schools get what’s left.
My child is right now without a teacher but I support the teachers 100%. I just feel it for those sitting exams. I hope some of the private tutors can pick up the slack until things are sorted out.
Go teachers, fight for your right! Time to get some respect. Without you there will be more dunce people walking around the place.
Collectively others who are owed need need to make a stand the same time, it is more effective.
Ok wrong is wrong, right is right. And two wrong doesn’t make it right. Did the Treasury brought this to the attention of the Ministry that they have issues with the payment of this back pay? we know government strap for cash but they eventually will have to find the money and pay the teachers. The point is was this avoidable. And some people need to take responsibility for always letting things boil out to the top. It will only reach the ears of Cabinet when things are out of control. Certain Public officials need to be fired or replaced, transfer to another desk job somewhere.
Sadly, in our neck of the woods, only drastic action brings forth results. Everyone must fight for their right or they get nowhere . Teachers and nurses, and civil servants are often taken for granted. Promises made must be promise kept. If you promise teachers a pay raise and for some reason you cannot meet the date that was decided upon, then relay it to the teachers and give an alternative date/time. Teachers are not unreasonable but do not take them for granted. They have bills and obligations like everyone else.. People only take drastic action after all other avenues failed . Sometimes it is the only thing that works. I hope that the matter is given the urgency with which it needs. Ultimately it’s the education of our children that would be affected. It’s too early in the new school year to be having these issues.
So under what name are these new thugs parading? With the continuing poor and under performance of our students at all levels of the public school system, how dare they demand that taxpayers dig deeper in tge public purse to satisfy their cravings. Once again, these thugs are encouraging the spread of delinquency among the youth. If teaching doesn’t satisfy your financial needs, then quit and find one that fits your needs and expertise. Time to remove the teaching profession from the hands of thugs and restore it to its right place
…”they have decided to put down their chalk and dusters” hahaha! I guess the post office employees put down their stamps and envelopes yesterday.
Some may say unions have benefitted Antigua, some may say they have stymied the growth of the country while others will say that unions are plain selfish and don’t give a crap about their members, their employers or the country. I will say that doing this at the start of the school year hurts the children more than anyone else.
@ Faithful Nation. You are the thug, having ppl work and not paying them their due, is thug mentality, Ppl like you are what is wrong with this country, some of you already get your hand grease, house land and even getting 6 thousands dollars to watch a football field. This government has made up positions and paying ppl who do nothing and we teachers have to be teach these children and also be babysitters as some of these parents have a hands off approach. Where would you be without your teachers, your doctor, your nurse, your friends and family? Think about that and shut your stupid mouth. If you believe the government must owe a hard working teacher 15 thousand, 20 thousand. before all are gone!! You and this government are the thugs. Question: have you ever been owed a large sum of money? Was that a good feeling? Struggling, having bills to pay, family to feed, mortgage…etc. The total owed to the teachers is in excess of 2 million. Who are the thugs. We sold Alfa Nero for 40 million, you mean to say none of that could have gone to the ppl of this nation that they f***Ing owe money to( Liat workers?, teachers, infrastructure?) OWE THE GOVERNMENT OWE THEM. NOT BORROWED, THEY ARE OWED! IF SOMEBODY WORK PAY THEM, PAY THEM PLEASE!. only politician family and friends and live comfortable In Antigua? The dawg have money to fix up his son place, increase his allowance and others by 300%, so everything is just to benefit he and he ppl Rh? but the poor Antiguan cant get the little money we work for? You have to be a dunce. A real clown to talk bad about your teachers. I hope one day you get advantaged and suffer the same way the teachers are suffering. you need a taste of suffering to humble yourself, you ignorant fool.
But, but, but, didn’t our clown-in-chief 🥸 say that Antigua is now an “ECONOMIC POWERHOUSE?”
Give the teachers their unpaid retroactive pay.
And by the way, if you want a good belly laugh, just read the inane and uninspiring earlier comment by the ABLP’S government “UNVERIFIED” statistician @ Less We Forget [He].
Remember, this government shill thought that Gaston Browne was an equal to Jesus when he equated the Prime Minister’s garbage collection stunt, to Jesus’ washing of feet when he was using the previous moniker of @ From The Sideline.
HOW CAN ANYONE TAKE THIS “VERIFIED” ABLP SPOKESMAN SERIOUSLY?
I honestly stand by their their decision. Being a teacher used to be a respectable job, and not the position is look led down upon because of the pay or countless disrespect they take from students on a daily basis. Teachers are the key to the youths future believe it or not, and what they do in that classroom, making the next priminister or CEO, should never be taken for granted. Give them what they deserve!
Render unto teachers the things that are teachers, render unto public servants the things that are public servants, in times like these alot of people are place at an inconvenience just because the leaders are taking them for granted and when they stand up they are wrong to want their monies. I can’t see someone in their rightful mind will not condemn the leaders but will blame workers, we live in a society where wrong is right, and right is wrong. Pay the monies owed! It’s wickedness!
Think.the nurses will be next
Teachers had all summer to protest and wait until the kids go back to school. That’s unfortunate.
When I read the comments of the Labourites, I understand why a clown like Gaston Browne is able to stay in power.
The DAWG and his puppets gave themselves a 14%raise,as if the needed it, plus retro pay,one time. Now you dunces critize teachers for standing up?
Good for the teachers union. Don’t know why ALL public servants don’t down tools and demand their backpay from 2018 and shut this country down,running the Browne DAWG and his puppets out of office.
@Less We Forget just shut to fuck down.
Please verify the last time members of parliament and the cabinet gave themselves a pay raise and all the Treasury did was comply.
What the fuck is this you can’t demand your own money?
Let these bitches default on one of these Chinese loans for over three(3) years and let’s hear what song you’ll be shitting then. The fuck from your brains should’ve reached your ass by then. Hopefully scotch bonnet pepper was not used to flavor the shit in your brains regarding one’s inherent rights and freedoms.
Could this not have been approached over the summer vacation? 8 weeks for crying out loud.You people keep holding the children hostage in the name of more money. I think this approach is irresponsible quite frankly.
@james the clown: Why the heck would they protest in the Summer? Were schools in session at the time? I stand with the Teachers 1000%.For Gaston Browne and his Kitchen Cabinet paid themselves hefty raises with back pay.They only cared for themselves and to hell with all others.They are bunch of greedy,selfish,bloated,bastards.Stand your grounds,Teachers.Do not bend and or bow down to anyone on this earth.You ought to be paid your back pay from 2019,5 years ago.
It’s deeply disheartening to see the educational system in Antigua failing its students and teachers. As a retired US teacher with ties to the island, I’ve personally witnessed the poor conditions in public schools. Classrooms lack proper lighting and ventilation, with graffiti-covered walls and inadequate teaching tools. Technology is outdated and often nonfunctional, hindering modern teaching and learning.
These conditions make it incredibly challenging for teachers to create a positive learning environment. The lack of attention to these basic needs suggests a troubling indifference. One wonders if the children of education officials attend these same schools.
The current situation is simply not conducive to educational progress. It’s understandable that teachers are resorting to industrial action over pay, but the infrastructure also desperately needs attention. It’s my hope that both issues will be addressed to provide Antigua’s children with the quality education they deserve.
Next for civil servants to protest for there long overdue OVERTIME pay. The rich seem to be getting richer and the poor, poorer in this country.
@James Brown. Really, lol. So school in on holiday and teachers stage a sit-in? Oh boy!! These labourites.
The teachers being on vacation gave the ministry months to get their house in order so the teachers could be paid upon return. They did nothing and now the teachers are to be blamed for taking a stand against broken promises? I can see that none of your family members are in that profession else you would think entire differently.