Clarke: Finance ministry committed to working with JTA to iron out teachers’ concerns

Ahead of today’s proposed meeting of the Jamaica Teachers’ Association (JTA), Finance and the Public Service Minister Dr Nigel Clarke has declared that his ministry remains committed to continuing to work with the teachers’ union’s executive in the interest of the nation’s educators and public.

Clarke’s comments came after word surfaced Wednesday that a perceived lack of response from the Government over outstanding salary issues, resulting from the public-sector reclassification and compensation exercise, would top the agenda at today’s JTA meeting.

In response, Clarke told The Gleaner yesterday that since a meeting with the JTA Executive in May, his ministry has remained in communication with the JTA in trying to set a date to discuss the concerns.

“At a meeting with members of the JTA Executive on May 30, 2023, the JTA presented examples of reported anomalies in a schedule, some with copies of payslips,” Clarke said.

“The Transformation Implementation Unit individually reviewed and checked each of these cases, and the recalculations show that there were no errors in any of the calculations in the cases brought forward by the JTA in that meeting. However, there were issues in some of the conversions. This information was communicated to the secretary general of the JTA by phone call on Friday, June 9. The MOFPS (Ministry of Finance and the Public Service) also indicated its availability to take members of the JTA Executive through these recalculations, step by step.”

The minister added: “At the May 30, 2023, meeting, the JTA raised two policy matters, which centre on a difference of interpretation. These matters were delegated to a Technical Review Committee consisting of members from the JTA and technocrats from the Ministry of Education and Youth (MEY) and the MOFPS. The MOFPS proposed a date in early June for the first meeting of the Technical Review Committee. This date was agreed to by the JTA and the MEY. Subsequently, however, the JTA requested a rescheduling.

“Later, on June 22, the JTA proposed a date of June 27. Within a few hours of receiving that proposal, the SHRMD (Strategic Human Resource Management Division) responded that the new proposed date conflicted with pre-existing commitments. On July 5, the JTA proposed a date of July 10. Again, the SHRMD responded that this date also conflicted with pre-existing commitments. The SHRMD and JTA continue to dialogue to agree on a suitable date for all parties for the meeting of the Technical Review Committee.”

On Wednesday, JTA President La Sonja Harrison said that at the meeting in May, it was felt by members that the Government seemed to be moving very slowly in addressing issues involving the teachers, particularly “given the current climate in which we are operating where teachers are leaving despite the new compensation regime”.

She had added: “The meeting was held on May 30, and we have not received a response on policy movement on some of the issues we highlighted, and those have to come in writing.”