MINISTER of Education, Skills, Youth and Information Senator Dr Dana Morris Dixon says she has immediately escalated the issue of non-payment of graduate allowances for teachers to Cabinet for resolution, upon being made aware of the problem.

Dr Dixon said in a statement Tuesday that the ministry has been instructed to continue paying graduate allowances for teachers until further advised.

Meanwhile, permanent secretary in the Ministry of Education Dr Kasan Troupe also committed to quickly implementing the decision.

“The ministry understands the importance of these allowances to affected teachers. With the intervention of Minister Morris Dixon all outstanding payments will be processed and disbursed by Friday, February 28, 2025,” Dr Troupe said.

Jamaica Teachers’ Association (JTA) on Monday signalled its displeasure with three matters, to include the non-payment of graduate allowances, and said it was eagerly waiting on the issues to be addressed.

The two other issues are non-payment of the retroactive mileage allowance for April to November 2022, and the pace of salary negotiations for 2025-2028.

“The memorandum of understanding for salaries 2022-2025 indicated that the graduate allowance would be paid as at April 1, 2024 and be paid at a rate of one increment for the master’s and one increment for the doctorate — and paid between the fifth and sixth points on the applicable scale,” JTA said in a statement issued by Leaon Nash, administrative officer.

“We find objectionable and not in good faith the removal of this allowance by the Ministry of Education. We ask for an immediate and absolute return to the agreed payment to the teaching service, with immediate effect.”

The group said with regards to non-payment of the retroactive mileage allowance for April to November 2022, the Ministry of Finance agreed to pay mileage to travelling officers at a rate of $100 per kilometre, with effect from April 1, 2022.

“This agreement required a retroactive amount for the period April 1, 2022 to November 30, 2022. The ministry indicated that the funds for this payment would be included in the last supplementary estimates for the 2024-2025 fiscal year. This was passed in the House of Representatives on October 15, 2024. We lament the non-payment of these funds with one pay period left in this financial year. We demand this payment with immediate effect,” JTA said.

It added that in keeping with the agreement between the Government of Jamaica and the Joint Confederation of Trade Unions, “[we] adjusted our claim cycle to submit our claim for the period by November 30, 2024, to facilitate the conclusion of the negotiations by March 31, 2025. This timeline would see teachers receive the increments which were unilaterally withheld during the 2022-2025 contract period. We have to date been called to one meeting on January 28, 2025 to clarify the claim submitted. With March commencing later this week, we have reached the end of our patience”.

JTA said they would not accept any attempts to renege on the payment of the annual increments in accordance with the dates specified in the agreement, “due to the fact that we believe that the Ministry of Finance has orchestrated the running out of the time by their non-engagement of the negotiation process”.