Teachers get 14% pay rise after negotiations with government

Yesterday marked a significant milestone as the Teachers’ Union and the government officially signed the collective bargaining agreement for the period 2018-2024, following months of tough negotiations.

The agreement is a comprehensive document that lays out both parties’ expectations regarding various aspects of working conditions, benefits, salaries, and the rights of teachers and the union in relation to addressing contractual disputes.

One of the agreement’s key highlights is the 14 percent pay increase for teachers, which will be retroactive to 2018.

The first five percent increment was implemented in 2018, while the remaining nine percent will be paid as of January this year.

Negotiations are also underway to finalize the reclassification of salaries, which will see additional hikes based on individual job categories retroactively from January.

Addressing the media at the government’s Establishment Department on Old Parham Road, the union President expressed his gratitude to all those who contributed to the successful outcome of the negotiations.

He thanked the previous executive for drafting the contract, Dr. Colin Greene for being the lead negotiator, and the membership for their unrelenting support.

The General Secretary of the union, Sharon Kelsick, expressed her delight with what they had achieved, saying that it was a significant accomplishment for the executive team, who only took office in 2022.

It is worth noting that the negotiations were not without their challenges. Last year, talks over issues ranging from teacher upgrades to general school safety resulted in teachers taking industrial action.

However, the union representatives suspended the action after two weeks as a gesture of good faith.

The last collective bargaining agreement signed between the two parties, according to the union, was in November 2008.

The union President expressed optimism that talks over the 2025-2027 agreement would not take decades to complete, stating that their proposal would be submitted to the Establishment Department by the end of this year, with negotiations expected to commence before mid-2025.