By Svetlana Marshall

The President of the Guyana Teachers’ Union (GTU), Dr. Mark Lyte, is warning the Government that there will be a resumption of the nationwide industrial action by teachers, if it fails to return to the negotiation table to discuss salary increases for teachers for the period 2019-2023 as part of a proposed multi-year agreement. 

“I am issuing here, a verbal ultimatum that within the next few hours, within the next few hours, if the government does not indicate their willingness to come to the table, to come to the table, and I am sending a very clear message, if you are not willing to come to the table to discuss 2019-2023, or to negotiate around that period, what years we are going to focus on, there is going to be a resumption of a massive industrial action, a resumption of industrial action. He that has an ear, let him ear,” Lyte said. 

He issued the warning during a video statement on Facebook. He said particulars of the ultimatum will be communicated formally to the Government soon. The GTU President called on teachers to be on standby.

“Teachers with the way things are going, I urge you to get your slippers out, get your boots out, get your feet ready, get your water ready. We did it for five weeks, and we can do it for however long is required. The Government must respect the teachers of this nation, and I stand here as a leader with integrity, that I will not, that I will not, allow anyone to bully us. I want to say to the educators of Guyana, we are stronger together, we are stronger together. And for those of you, who shied away for those five weeks, I ask you to get ready. We are in the process of writing to give the ultimatum, in terms of a specific timeline by which the Government must return to the table,” the GTU President said. 

Mr. Lyte warned that the union will not be backing down from its position as there is “a lot more at stake”. He reminded that the recent strike action spanned more than four weeks.

The GTU President explained that other steps to be taken by the union, include returning to the High Court. He said the Government, through the Ministry of Education, breached the agreement that was birthed out of the Court ordered mediation process, when it reneged on an agreement reached during the first round of negotiations on salary increases for teachers. 

The talks collapsed on Tuesday after the Education Ministry, through its Permanent Secretary, indicated that the Government will not discuss increases for the period proposed by Union.

According to the Government, the 2024 Budget does not have the fiscal space to accommodate such increases, and it will only look at increases for 2024 and beyond.

Today, Lyte said the Union is prepared to compromise, but any compromise must be based on the proposal that was submitted. 

“We are ready to resume talks, that’s our first option. We are ready to resume talks specific to the submitted multi-year proposal 2019-2023, the years we focus on can always be up for discussion, but we are not to discuss a 2024 proposal that we have not submitted, and that is as clear as day. The second thing I want to say, the matter goes back to the Court because we feel that there is a breach of the mediated agreement. The court ordered a mediation to arrive at an agreement to negotiate a multi-year proposal that was submitted since 2020. The Government is breaching that. We also, are going to use the signed minutes as evidence of this breach, that at one meeting you decide on this, and at the next meeting you made a 360,” Lyte said.

The GTU President also fired back at the Minister of Education, Priya Manickchand, who recently questioned whether teachers should be paid for the time spent at home during the COVID-19 pandemic when schools were forced to close their doors. 

Lyte said while schools were closed, teachers utilized their financial resources and found innovative ways, including the use of technology, to ensure their students were taught. He said results of their efforts were reflective in the national examinations that the students completed during the same pandemic period.

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