The Leader of the Opposition also criticized the Minister of Education's announcement in the House that the teachers from all grant-aided schools would receive 100% salaries, pension, and service benefits from the government. Barrow says that the money for the pension would likely come out of a new proposed contributory fund, and that the UDP had made a similar proposal when they were in government. He added that the PM also owes the teachers an apology for his recent statements where he told them to take a look in the mirror.
Shyne Barrow, Leader of the Opposition
"When the Minister of Education got up and pronounced that the teachers would be getting 100% of their salaries whereas in some schools they were only getting 70%, I must highlight to the Belizean people that that will come with a new contributory pension plan where for the first time now, public officers will be contributing to the fund and that is what will pay for this increase so again the government is not doing anything noble or generous as in the case of the port. And I must place on record that the UDP, when the Honorable member from Collet, Patrick Faber, was Minister of Education had made this same presentation proposal to the unions but they had wanted it to be retroactive for all the years that you were a teacher, whereas now they are settling for the same thing that Honorable Faber had proposed which is five years back and at that time there was no contributory fund envisioned although the former minister says it is something that we would have had to eventually come to terms but again we just need to put it on the table to be clear that the UDP did make this exact proposal."
"We join with the union, the BNTU in demanding that the prime minister apologize for the very disrespectful comments that he made. Yes, money is important, financial support is important, but to demoralize our teachers like that, to demean our teachers like that in such a blanket statement, there is no system, no institution is 100% effective so of course there will always be people who are not performing but the way in which the statement was made, it gives the impression that teachers, period, are not performing to the level they should and I believe that is dishonest report of the facts and the prime minister owes our teachers an apology."
The details of the proposed contributory pension fund are part of an ongoing discussion between the joint unions and the GOB negotiating team.
