As economy deteriorates, teachers should not expect pay hike anytime soon

May 03, 2018 Letters

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DEAR EDITOR,
Teachers are entrusted with sculpting the Human Resource Capital of a Nation and should not only be afforded the best tools available in preparing a country’s human capital, they should also be remunerated in direct proportion with their contribution to a country’s economic capital, growth, and wellbeing.
Mr. Granger, a teacher cannot go to the market and make a purchase with his or her “heart in the right place.” (See Demerara Waves report dated May 1).
May Day 2018 will forever be remembered as the day the APNU+AFC Government put its contempt on display for the Guyanese teachers, when in one breath the Minister of Legal Affairs Basil Williams trumpeted his Government’s move to give teachers duty-free concessions for vehicles, and minutes later the president essentially told teachers that his heart is in the right place but dey ain’t got nothing fuh get. President Granger told teachers that salary increases will be decided by recommendations made to him and submitted to the Minister of Finance.
According to the President, the Ministry, after crunching the numbers, will supposedly make an announcement. The Ministry of Education’s wages bill for this year is already $5.1B and with the current economic climate, it is clear to see there is no money left in the ‘kitty’ to give teachers an increase in salary, much less the much deserved 40 per cent being asked for. We can never forget this government gave themselves a 50% pay raise weeks into taking government.
The president should have been upfront with the teachers—persons no doubt competent enough to read between the lines that his Government has not only depleted the National Reserves and increased the debt, but has also decimated productive income sectors. “My heart is in the right place” is perhaps a confession from the president, had he only continued with ‘but the treasury is empty.’
Teachers should not look forward to any announcement to be made by the Ministry of Finance anytime soon.
Mr Granger, ever wanting to look like the knight-in-shining-armor, would have been happy to announce to teachers on Labour Day, an increase—however meagre—but the numbers don’t lie, and based on the statistics, Finance Minister Winston Jordan would be hard pressed, at this point, to sustainably provide any, as there is no revenue stream or productive sector poised to provide any enhanced returns.
Perhaps President Granger is waiting for oil and gas before being able to tell teachers anything about a pay increase. He will be waiting long.
Finance Minister Winston Jordan in his Budget 2018 speech pontificated, “there is clear need for reform and innovation across all levels of education delivery – nursery, primary, secondary and tertiary. In recognition of this, Government established a Commission of Inquiry, whose report is expected to make searching recommendations to guide the innovation and reform initiatives. Our children must no longer be subjected to frequent teacher absenteeism, poor curriculum delivery, shortages of text books and materials, and non-submission of grades at tertiary levels.”
Mr. Jordan’s platitudes are now being seen for what it was—a bluff—since he knew there was nothing in the treasury to make a decent offer to teachers. Public Servants were all across the board, ignored by His Excellency.
An examination of the figures demonstrates there was no real commitment on the part of the APNU+AFC Administration to pay teachers an increase, and they have found themselves hiding under the pretext of collective bargaining.
Minister Jordan himself said this year, we expect that 450 graduates will join the trained teacher workforce and 37 untrained teachers will complete the teacher upgrading programme, to prepare for the Trained Teachers‘ Certificate Programme.
“In 2018, we expect an additional 335 trained teachers to join the workforce,” he boldly announced.
Education as a percentage of the national budget last year was said to be 17.2 percent at $21.2B, but that figure went down by over a billion dollars to $19.9B for this year—a year in which there was the biggest budget ever.
One must however bear in mind that a large percentage of the Education Ministry’s total allocation for the year is expended on recurring expenses. Capital Expenditure such as the construction of new schools and repairs to existing structures also erode a significant chunk of the budget.
What then is left for a teacher’s package? Employment Costs is budgeted at $5.1B for the Ministry of Education in 2018.
Teachers are demanding a 50 % increase in wages and salaries having been left out of annual increases—a result of negotiations between the Guyana Teachers’ Union and government; negotiations started under the PPP, inherited and seemingly parked by Granger.
The APNU+AFC Government having depleted the country’s gold and cash reserves; increased public debt and decimating producing sectors will be hard pressed to find another $2B annually to pay the increases demanded. This does not even take into account putting a price to other promised concessions such as Duty Free concessions. The Guyanese teacher should not wait with bated breath for a positive announcement from the Granger administration. The kitty is now empty; there will be no pay increases for teachers anytime soon. The numbers don’t lie.
Peter R. Ramsaroop, MBA, PH.D
Economic Advisor to the Political Opposition

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