EDUCATION Minister Jerome Fitzgerald speaks in the House of Assembly.
By AVA TURNQUEST
Tribune Chief Reporter
aturnquest@tribunemedia.net
THE Ministry of Education has implemented a strict timeline for the submission and processing of payments for supply teachers after irregularities led to scores of teachers going unpaid for months, according to Education Minister Jerome Fitzgerald.
Mr Fitzgerald spoke to the pay dispute, first reported by The Tribune last week, during a press conference at the Ministry of Education yesterday.
He placed the blame for payment delays on untimely submission from principals in the various districts, and havoc wrought by Hurricane Matthew.
“The issue with supply teachers has now been resolved,” he said. “The challenge we have had with supply teachers has been that we cannot pay supply teachers until we have received the requisite information from the various districts around the country.
“In some instances principals have delayed the submission of those supply teacher requests and that has contributed to the delay of them being paid. The second issue, of course, is that we had a hurricane that intervened and that in and of itself caused a delay with regard to processing and the payment of some of those claims.”
Mr Fitzgerald explained that the new policy mandates that all districts submit claims for supply teachers every Thursday. He said his ministry has also been in talks with the Ministry of Finance to solidify a policy position that those claims are processed in a timely manner.
“We really didn’t have a strict timeline on when they (principals) were to submit them (claims) or a set date for submission,” Mr Fitzgerald said. “We just depended on them submitting them really when I guess they had a batch that accumulated.
“So we have mandated that whether it’s two, three, 40, every week we will have those submitted to the ministry and we will process them within that week as well. So that is going to cut down significantly the time.”
Supply teachers are retirees who have mostly been re-engaged by the government because of shortages across the country. Last week The Tribune was first to report that nearly 200 of them had not been paid for months.
In August 2016, Mr Fitzgerald expressed concern over the “unexpected” applications for early retirement from 119 public school teachers ahead of the 2016-2017 academic school year.
Mr Fitzgerald said at the time that the ministry would likely employ some 30 supply teachers to fill vacancies.
Comments
sealice 7 years, 3 months ago
Of course he can't take the blame for anything can he???
Economist 7 years, 3 months ago
This man must have a degree in "double talk".
Regardless 7 years, 3 months ago
.....this government is never proactive, it is always reactive with much procrastination and provocation. It is unfortunate they do not recognize the treasure it is to lead a nation of great potential but rather focus on depleting its monetary treasure.
Hogfish 7 years, 3 months ago
To my fellow Bahamians in the Constituency of Marathon,
It is now as all can have witnessed that there is many a nasty character in the PHellP! but I believe yours Fitzgerald is the most disgusting dog of the entire stinking bunch. (Him and Gray). He already tried to hide the truths and let you all get poison but the Rubis spill and now he is so less than a man to blame teachers for what is his responsibility.
This rat simply has no Shame !!
CurlyTail242 7 years, 3 months ago
Are they going to blame the hurricane for EVERYTHING this year? What manner of nonsense!
sheeprunner12 7 years, 3 months ago
This man has sunk the education system, its productivity, its teachers' morale and its capacity to transform the youth work skills environment to new levels .......... and to think that global agencies are giving him awards .......... for what???????........ a worthless graduation diploma and hollow CBAs?????? ......... He and the top MOE/DOE technocrats MUST be fired asap.
athlete12 7 years, 3 months ago
How could he blame the schools when they are his responsibility? Again who votes for these people?
Sign in to comment
Or login with:
OpenID