WITH the general election out of the way the Jamaica Teachers’ Association (JTA) is seeking a speedy resumption of wage talks which were stalled in the final days of the previous Dr Andrew Holness-led Administration.

On Friday, JTA President Mark Malabver told the Jamaica Observer that he has already written to the returned Minister of Finance Fayval Williams to indicate the body is ready to resume negotiations.

“We are anticipating that we will get some movement on some key items, based on the last discussion we had, and we expect that we will be able to hit the reset button. We cannot separate the issue of teacher migration from salaries. It is one of the major push factors of teacher migration,” said Malabver. “Our teachers are far more informed this time around as it relates to salaries and the reports that are out there. The teachers now know their value. The Government needs to come being cognisant of these reports and how we are to fix the education system to retain our teachers,” added Malabver.

He argued that the Government cannot continue to operate as if teacher shortage is not a major problem affecting the education system.

According to Malabver, the Government needs to do right by the teachers and give them liveable wages.

The JTA president pointed to a recent Caribbean Research Policy Institute (CaPRI) report which he said highlighted the salaries paid to teachers as a major problem, and argued that there seems to be no strategic response from the Government.

“In that report it highlighted the fact that Jamaican teachers are amongst the lowest paid in the Caribbean. It is one of the main reasons why teachers are migrating. Barbados and Trinidad don’t have an issue as it relates to teacher migration but Jamaica does.

“The only countries behind us are the Dominican Republic and Haiti. The Government definitely needs to treat with the issue of teacher migration. The CaPRI research points to key reasons why teachers are migrating,” said Malabver.

“There needs to be a strategic response from the Government to deal with the issue of teacher migration and salaries. Again, the Government is being given a golden opportunity at this time to attend to the issue of salaries in comparison to our Caribbean and global counterparts and give teachers a competitive salary.

“I also raised the issue of the Ernst and Young report which evaluated the teachers at band six, but the Government has put the teachers at band four. The difference between the two bands is $1.2 million annually, which would work out to $75,000 extra after tax per month,” added Malabver.

According to Malabver, another key issue for the JTA has to do with graduate allowance.

“Teachers are currently getting $4,800 per month after tax for graduate allowance; in the previous dispensation they used to get over $9,000. To put it into context again, when you look at students on PATH [Programme of Advancement Through Health and Education] who get lunches in our schools, they get $280 per day and that is $5,600 per month for being on PATH. Teachers are getting $4,800. Maybe it would have been better to put the teachers with master’s [degree] on PATH because we would have gotten more money on our salary,” Malabver said.

When the wage talks were paused in the lead-up to the recent general election the main sticking point between the finance ministry and the JTA was an offer of 7.5 per cent increase for the teachers over four years.

At that time Williams had reported that of the many items of claims submitted by the JTA, “there has been settlement of payment of advancement along salary bands and meaningful progress in the discussions around various other items, including the treatment of extra hours worked, matters of uniform, continuing the broadband programme service as the Government seeks to improve the delivery of education, and revision and passage of the pension legislation to treat with premature retirement”.