Multi-year agreement for teachers will start from 2024

The Ministry of Education on Friday announced that the conciliation process initiated to engage the Guyana Teachers’ Union (GTU) regarding the timeline for which a multi-year agreement should be agreed upon has come to an end.

The conciliation process has ended with the parties agreeing that the multi-year agreement will address a period commencing from 2024 and onwards.

“Bilateral talks will now begin on the multi-year agreement. The Ministry of Education will continue to serve teachers in various ways and continues to have the best interest of teachers at heart,” a release noted.

Teachers ended a more than two-month strike two weeks ago after the Guyana Teachers’ Union (GTU) and the Ministry of Education came to an agreement on the way forward.

In an agreement shared on Facebook by Education Minister Priya Manickchand on June 21, it was also agreed that there will be no victimisation, no loss of service, no transfer of teachers upon resumption and that teachers will return to their respective positions before the strike.

For context, an initial five-week strike began on February 5, with teachers demanding higher salary increases and duty-free concessions, among other benefits.

After a court-mediated process in March, talks between the Education Ministry and GTU resumed. Discussions were halted when the Education Ministry indicated that there was no fiscal space to cater for increases for the period 2019 -2023. Increases for 2024 and future years were put for consideration instead.