Why the Government is so insistent on aggravating the situation with the teachers is not easy to understand. Anyone would think that qualified educators were queuing up for jobs in the public schools in this country, rather than leaving in droves to work in the islands, or in New York or in Africa. After ten years in office, and endless friction with the public service unions in particular, one would have thought that the administration might have learnt by now that when trying to negotiate a settlement with a striking union it is helpful to reduce the temperature as far as possible. But no, there they go again poisoning the atmosphere while they purport to be in a talking mode.
On this occasion, the Government, having made an offer to the Guyana Teachers' Union (GTU) on the 2002 salaries - which is at the heart of the dispute - on the one hand, has now stopped the deduction of union dues and agency shop fees from teachers' salaries on the other. The issue is not one of illegality; the ruling of Justice Carl Singh in the case involving the Guyana Public Service Union appears to put them within the ambit of the law at this stage. The issue is one of timing. The administration has had plenty of space to implement this since the ruling, but it seems that it was only after 24 days of strike action by the teachers that their memories were miraculously jolted on the matter. At the very least, it says little for their efficiency.
On Friday we reported that in a letter dated May 5, Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Education Hydar Ally had said that the ministry had received a letter from teachers protesting about the unauthorised deductions. (We must presume that this was being proffered as the excuse as to why the Ministry could not wait until after the strike had been settled.) However, GTU Administrator Lancelot Baptiste said that known political activists of the PPP/C administration had been pressing a number of teachers to sign a letter asking the ministry to stop deductions from their salaries.
Mr Baptiste wasted no time in deeming the Ministry's action "union busting." Certainly, they open themselves to the allegation that they are trying to break the strike; if the GTU is not collecting dues, it cannot make payouts to teachers on strike. But even if, for the sake of argument, it were possible to break the strike, the resentment among union executives and teachers that would be created would cost the Government and the nation dearly. It is hardly the recommended way to deal with such a scarce human resource.
But this mistimed announcement is also indicative of something else, and that is a level of muddle at the heart of government. Labour Minister, Dr Dale Bisnauth, was reported as saying that at last week's meeting with the union he had been asked with reference to this matter, whether there had been some conspiracy between the government agencies. He had replied that he wanted to make it "abundantly clear" that the Ministry of Labour had to "be seen as fair... we cannot be associated with what the Ministry of Education does." He then conceded, "It is fair to say that it does make our job a bit more difficult."
So here we have one branch of Government attempting to create an atmosphere for negotiation and settlement, and another seemingly going for confrontation. Since the beginning of this impasse, the pronouncements emanating from the Ministry of Education have hardly been conducive to solutions. One can only hope that relations have not now been so soured, that the Ministry of Labour finds its mediation work made unduly difficult.
Parents, teachers, children, the public at large and, we presume, the Government, want the teachers back in the classroom. For that to happen, the GTU would have to accept the Government offer as a basis for negotiation on the 2002 wages and salaries issue, so that it can then begin talks on terms of resumption with the Ministry of Education. Will the wiser heads in Government please prevail upon the hardliners to cease aggravating the situation any further so that the difficult talks ahead are not torpedoed by an unnecessarily inflamed climate, and the Minister of Labour's mediation efforts are not undermined.