​March 18th, 2020

(2019)

UPDATE ON MEETING WITH THE MINISTER OF EDUCATION

On Tuesday 17th March, 2020, the Executive of the Trinidad and Tobago Unified Teachers’
Association (TTUTA) held its first meeting with the Minister of Education, the Honourable
Anthony Garcia. This Executive was elected in October 2019 and had only been able to secure
its first meeting in March, 2020. TTUTA previously wrote to the Minister on January 6th, 2020
and February 6th, 2020 seeking meetings. There was not even an acknowledgement of the
requests. However, after the statements of the Prime Minister on Covid 19, TTUTA was finally
invited to a meeting today. TTUTA believed that it was important to demonstrate good faith in
the interest of education, and attended today’s meeting. Also present at the meeting was the
Executive Team of the Ministry of Education. TTUTA expressed its gratitude for the opportunity
to discuss critical issues affecting education, even though the discussions were overshadowed by
the national crisis of dealing with Covid 19. The Association signalled its intention to discuss the
rescheduling of the SEA, extension of deadlines for submission of CSEC marks, restructuring of
work for the new academic year, and funding for schools.

The Honourable Minister spoke on the government’s decision to close schools until April 20th in
order to prevent the spread of the virus. TTUTA commended the state for this pre-emptive
measure. TTUTA took the opportunity to indicate to the Ministry that many teachers across the
country were still ‘at work’- interfacing with students on digital platforms, and preparing and
sharing revision material with students by various means. The President also commented that
teachers were sharing learning resources with each other, and with students and parents. The
Minister explained the need for systems to be fully prepared for the administration of the SEA,
as well as the subsequent marking of papers and registration of students at the secondary level.
The psychological impact of the current situation on those candidates doing the Assessment was
also raised by the Ministry of Education. Ultimately, TTUTA agreed with the Minister’s
proposition to postpone the SEA until the second week in May.
Minister Garcia then proposed an extension of Term 3, due to begin on April 20th, by one week.
No sound rationale was provided to TTUTA for this extension. The Minister alluded to the fact
that ‘teachers were out of school’. This was reiterated by other persons on the Ministry of
Education’s Team. TTUTA got no dates for this proposed extension. The President of TTUTA
indicated that the Association was not prepared to accept such an imposition, in light of a
previous judgement by the Court. One of TTUTA’s officials briefly explained the judgement
mentioned. The Honourable Minister queried the professionalism of TTUTA, which he as
President of TTUTA fought for in years gone by. The President stated that TTUTA maintained
its professional character. However, as a trade union, there was a responsibility to uphold the
rights, and seek the interest of members. The Honourable Minister declared that there was
nothing more to discuss. Minister Garcia stood up and the meeting came to an end.

Colleagues, there were fundamental principles that were at stake today, that could not be
ignored.

The ILO Holidays with Pay Convention (Revised), 1970 (No. 132), entitles workers to a right to take
three weeks’ paid leave each year. The Convention also provides that the timing of the leave period
should in principle be determined by the employer, in consultation with the employee or his or her
representatives. Legislation in many countries provides for a longer period of paid annual leave than is
prescribed by the ILO Convention.

Two noteworthy points here are the entitlement to ‘Holidays with Pay’ as well as consultation
between the employer and the employee or his or her representatives. This internationally
accepted norm is the basis upon which many workers’ unions uphold the right to vacation leave.

Secondly, in 1985, in the case between the Chief Personnel Officer and the Trinidad and Tobago
Unified Teachers’ Association, heard in the Special Tribunal of the Industrial Court, Her
Honour, Mrs. Cynthia E.E. Riley-Hayes, made the following points.

1. “ A power to prescribe the period of School Vacation is a power to prescribe that there
shall be no School Vacation…During term children are required to attend school and
teachers are therefore required to teach. During school vacation they are not so required
and it is therefore for teachers, in its broadest sense, a non-teaching period. That is the
work pattern of teachers. Any interference with that is an interference with terms and
conditions of employment, so too is any extending or shrinking of one period vis a vis the
 other and so too is any variation of the concepts such as to make optimal the attendance
of children during part of the term.” ​The reasonable conclusion must be made here
that there is an inextricable link between the establishment of the school term and
the vacation period, and that ‘...​ ​any interference with that is an interference with
terms and conditions of employment…’​ ​This was the first premise used to object to
the imposition.

2. “The period of school vacation is therefore the period of vacation leave for teachers…
because of the nature of the teaching profession the vacation of teachers is made to
coincide with the school vacation. The vacation of teachers is at fixed periods designated
school vacation and this is a term and condition of employment … circulars therefore
clearly sought to unilaterally vary the terms and conditions of employment of teachers
and are therefore invalid … the good intentions of the person issuing the circular or the
extent of the infringement on the negotiating rights of teachers are in no way material to
the issue. If you put your toe on my boundary you trespass just as if you put your entire
body.” ​It follows then, that there must be discussion on the variation of the terms
and conditions of employment. If TTUTA were to give way in this instance to simply
agree to one week’s extension, without sound rationale, what precedent would be
set?

One school of thought on this matter is that in this crisis situation, and in the interest of
education, teachers should be willing to extend the new term by one week. If the TTUTA
officials at the meeting, as leaders of the representative majority union, were to make a unilateral
decision to agree to the extension of the term and the shortening of teachers’ vacation, that would
have been a betrayal of teachers’ trust in the leadership. Without the guidance of the General
Council, on whose authority then, would TTUTA’s officers have made that decision?

Furthermore, what of the hundreds of teachers who have not stopped teaching or interacting with
students during this period? Will they be exempted from that proposed extension since they were
still ‘at work’ during the period of closure? Especially since these same teachers were called
upon by the Ministry of Education to voluntarily share resources for various levels.

Conversely, schools were closed by the state. Why are teachers the only category of state
employees being asked to give up their vacation leave, despite the conditions for ‘pandemic
leave’ outlined by the CPO and the Minister of Labour? No other employees have been asked to
give up vacation leave and ‘make up’ for being away from work. Why are teachers being
penalised?
It is not unprecedented for assessments and examinations from the previous term to be conducted
in the following term. Teachers of this country have been making preparations for this
eventuality. It really begs the question about whether the Minister of Education appreciates the
work of all of our educators. Furthermore, does this behaviour by the Minister of Education
demonstrate respect for the representative majority union?

It is most unfortunate that the meeting today ended the way it did. If TTUTA is to work in the
interest of education, then in the first instance, TTUTA must first work in the interest of its
members. TTUTA must consistently uphold members’ rights. TTUTA must be recognised as the
significant education partner which it is.

ANTONIA TEKAH-DE FREITAS

PRESIDENT