KINGSTON, Jamaica — The Jamaica Teachers’ Association (JTA) President Mark Malabver asked the association’s Action Committee to place a pause on any industrial action it was contemplating on Friday after the Government submitted a new wage offer to teachers.

Malabver said the pause is intended to allow the offer to be tabled before the JTA’s Salaries and Conditions of Service Committee, where it will be carefully examined and deliberated upon.

Following this process, the JTA said, a formal response will be submitted to the Ministry of Finance.

“The JTA wishes to emphasise, however, that this pause does not signal satisfaction. Rather, it represents the organisation’s ongoing commitment to a process of principled and constructive engagement, as we continue to advocate for fair and just treatment for Jamaica’s teachers,” the association said Friday.

The association said it is looking forward to continuing the negotiations in good faith with the Government, with one clear and unwavering objective: “to secure a salary package that reflects the true worth of our teachers as nation builders, and that acknowledges the sacrifice teachers make daily in shaping the future of Jamaica”.