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Govt rapped on the knuckles by US education union boss

The leader of the largest labour union for teachers in the United States has scathingly criticised the Bruce Golding administration, for its handling of the wage dispute with Jamaican public school teachers.

Dennis Van Roekel, President of the National Education Association (NEA), lambasted the Jamaican Government, in his keynote address during the opening session of the annual Jamaica Teachers' Association (JTA) Conference in Ocho Rios, St Ann Monday morning.

Mr. Van Roekel, who leads the influential association which comprises a little over three million members of the teaching profession, received desk thumping endorsements from JTA delegates when he blasted the Golding Government for the treatment being meted out to teachers over outstanding retroactive salaries, which is a major agenda item at the annual conference.

J’can Govt needs to honour its agreements – Roekel

In a biting criticism, he said the Government’s position was wrong and they should move quickly to make amends.

“I can only imagine the frustration and the anger when your Government broke its promise to pay teachers what they owe them … that is just plain wrong. When you sit down at the table in a collective bargaining environment, then it is incumbent upon both parties to honour that agreement … neither side should ignore it and walk away,” he said.

Wrong cutting education budget

The NEA President also went on to knock the Government for the spending cuts that were made in education leading up to the agreement it struck with the International Monetary Fund for a Standby Agreement this year.

“In tough economic times, it just doesn’t make sense to cut education. When times are tough, you want to build a solid and stable economic environment but once you build for the future, you will have to keep people in jobs in education,” Mr. Roekel said.

In a few hours, Nadine Malloy, Principal of the Buff Bay High School and JTA President Elect, will be installed as the 46th President at a scheduled investiture ceremony during the third session of the conference Monday evening.

Opposing budget cuts to education

Meanwhile Mr. Van Roekel has started to agitate the US Government to oppose any cuts in education, involving conditions imposed by the International Monetary Fund (IMF).

He told JTA delegates that he has written to Timothy Geithner, US Secretary of the Treasury, for his immediate intervention in the issue which as according to him, this will directly impact Jamaican teachers.    

“In Congress, they’ve passed a bill directing the US Director not to approve loans that require cuts in education, so I’ve written to Mr. Giethner to say please do what you can to influence this so that one of the stipulations for loans to countries is that they do not cut the budget to education, that they do not shortchange students … they should not have to pay for the economic crisis. The adults have to find a way to make it work and it should not be done on the backs of students,” Mr. Roekel said.

 

 



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