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Aretha Willie, Principal of George Headley Primary School
By Kimone Witter
Principal of George Headley Primary School, Aretha Willie, is warning that the challenges in the education system will continue to make migration attractive to teachers.
The warning comes after about eight educators at George Headley Primary as well as some from at least two other primary schools in the Corporate Area are yet to receive their salaries for September.
Mrs. Willie says with no definitive word from the Ministry of Education on when the teachers will be paid, the school will have to pull funds from its coffers to cover their expenses.
The principal warned that these and other issues in the education section will further push teachers to leave Jamaica.
"I lost seven teachers this year to the overseas programme. Seven. Not one of them resigned here to go to another school locally. All seven resigned to go overseas on the programme," she disclosed.
While she managed to replace six of the seven teachers, the principal cautioned that local educators are seemingly being trained for export.
"I have young teachers fresh out of college and I can tell you they are not going to stay," she suggested.
Mrs. Willie was responding to Morning Agenda host Jodi-Ann Quarrie, on Power 106.
George Headley Primary welcomed seven new hires at the start of the academic year, but only two received their salaries this month. Of eight returning teachers, six were paid.
Mrs. Willie indicated that she has also not been paid.
She said the Ministry of Education said there was a system glitch which caused the delay, and had promised that the salaries would have been paid by Friday afternoon.
At the same time, it was highlighted in a Gleaner article on Monday that some Jamaican teachers recruited by UK schools are paid significantly less than their British counterparts.
But president-elect of the Jamaica Teachers' Association Mark Malabver told the newspaper that the pay disparity will not deter others from leaving the Jamaican classroom for England.
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