By The Fair Wages and Salaries Commission (FWSC) has appealed to the three teacher unions currently engaged in a nationwide strike to reassess their position.
The unions have accused the commission of being slow to address their concerns regarding conditions of service.
However, Ing Benjamin Arthur, the Chief Executive Officer of the Commission, has refuted these claims, stating that negotiations are actively ongoing to resolve the unions’ grievances.
Ing. Arthur expressed astonishment at the unions’ choice to strike, highlighting the ongoing negotiations aimed at meeting the teachers’ demands.
“We were very much surprised…We have been engaging them over a period concerning some requests that they placed before the employer for negotiations,” Arthur stated.
He mentioned that they had recently received funds from the Ministry of Finance to facilitate wage negotiations.
Although the ability to spend the funds lies with the Ministry of Finance, the Commission had informed the teacher unions about the availability of funds and scheduled a meeting for Thursday.
“We admit tremendous progress,” Arthur said. “We were very expecting that Thursday…we should be able to, if possible, conclude the negotiation.”
The Commission perceives that the strike will lead to additional delays in the negotiation process, given their anticipation of making substantial headway during the planned meeting.
FWSC deems the strike as unwarranted and urges the unions to resume discussions at the negotiation table.
“When the news got to us, we were very much surprised…Why were we surprised? We were surprised simply because we had been engaging the teacher unions over a period concerning some requests that they placed before the employer for negotiations. We have been engaging them.”
