Setting the Record Straight: G.O.B. Decides Whether Salaries of Striking Teachers are Docked

Minister of Education Patrick Faber says that the government is solely responsible to make decisions on whether or not salaries should be docked for teachers who go on strike. There has been disquiet among teachers about now including the payment of teachers’ salaries in the smartstream system. Minister Faber says that it is to ensure greater efficiency when processing substitute teachers and addressing slippages made by school managements. 

Patrick Faber

Patrick Faber, Minister of Education

“It is not the government that is confused about who it is to dock pay. the government maintains that if people don’t work that the docking of pay should happen. It was the B.N.T.U. who challenged that matter in court and remember the government’s position is that it is the government. And to be honest with you, we don’t have to do the kind of thing in terms of putting the payment of these salaries on smartstream to fix that problem. We are not confused about that. and I have gone on record to say if that is their confusion, we will amend the law to make it crystal clear that it is government who pays and it is the government who makes the determination at some point whether or not once teachers go on strike that their pay will be docked. So I don’t appreciate that people try to mix the two things together because it is not the case. And like I said, the purpose of us doing it like that is to ensure greater efficiency.”