UTech administrative staff, clad in black, protest on Monday over outstanding payments.
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Janette Grayson, President of the University of Technology Jamaica Administrative Staff Association (UTASA)
By Racquel Porter
Scores of administrators at the University of Technology (UTech) made good on their promise to take industrial action over outstanding payments under the almost three-year-old revised compensation system.
Clad in black, the members marched to the front of the campus on Monday morning, as they blocked and padlocked the entrances to the university.
The police intervened citing obstruction of traffic.
Janette Grayson, President of the University of Technology Jamaica Administrative Staff Association (UTASA), said the staff are perturbed following's Friday's meeting.
Ms. Grayson said during the meeting she was informed that the Ministry of Finance agreed to pay the new salaries next month, but no indication was given as to when retroactive payment would be made.
"And we have taken note that what has transpired in the public sector since 2022 is that after the implementation of the salaries, the retroactive payments are either paid in the same months or a month after. However, we are not hearing a date as to when that retroactive payment will be paid," she complained.
The situation, she said, has left the administrative staff "extremely agitated" about the way the matter is being handled.
"And so we believe that our cup is full and running over and it is time our government pay attention to the crisis and what is happening to us here at UTech," she stressed.
Ms. Grayson indicated that she would be meeting with stakeholders on Monday, but warned that if the workers' demands were not met, "the action will continue into the week until we can hear a payment schedule for our retroactive payment".
She noted that the situation has also impacted students, but urged them to "bear with us" as the staff agitate for their owed payments.
"The staff turnover has been so high because of the lack of this implementation, and so our students are not properly cared for when we have vacancies, when we have areas that are not manned because people are not staying on the job long enough," she acknowledged.
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