Barbados Union of Teachers Challenges Ministry of Education to Provide Data on Teacher Shortages

By Jenique Belgrave

President of the Barbados Union of Teachers Rudy Lovell is challenging the Ministry of Education to “bring the data” to support its claim that there are no openings for temporary teachers whose contracts were not renewed for the upcoming term.

He is adamant that while those educators are without jobs, several of the island’s primary schools will be understaffed when classes resume on Monday.

While not naming the schools, he disclosed in an interview with Barbados TODAY on Thursday: “There’s one school where there are two teachers on term’s leave and one on sick leave. At another school, three teachers have been transferred, and at another school, two teachers are on leave. At another school, two teachers migrated overseas and no replacement has been sent for them as yet. Then there is another school where four teachers are out – two on leave, one on sick leave, one transferred, with no replacement. Then you have another school where four teachers were transferred.”

“So there’s a shortage of teachers at various primary schools. So to say that there is no room for these teachers to me is a bit puzzling, but we will give the ministry the opportunity to correct the wrong,” Lovell added.

Last Friday, more than 20 temporary primary school teachers were informed that their contracts would not be renewed for the upcoming term. The BUT immediately sought answers from the ministry, saying that it had not been consulted on the matter.

Representatives of the BUT as well as the Barbados Secondary Teachers’ Union (BSTU) met with ministry officials on Monday. The ministry released a statement two days later in which it sought to clarify the process for reassignment of temporary teachers to nursery, primary and special schools.

According to the ministry, “there were some schools where the class roll was very low and it was therefore considered that the teacher-to-student ratio was low, negating the need for the high number of teachers assigned to the school. Those teachers have been reassigned to other schools. Consequently, those teachers whose tenure was short term could not be accommodated at this time”.

“As at September 11, 2023, 22 teachers, who had been assigned during the last academic year, remained to be assigned. This is due to the return of the substantive teachers who were on leave,” it added.

But pointing out that the Government announced on Thursday that the 220 persons who served as school monitors during the COVID-19 pandemic were being given the opportunity to become school assistants, Lovell questioned why room could not be found for more teachers as well.

“The Government of Barbados found room for the workers in the ash programme; that wasn’t a problem, they were accommodated in the system. The Government of Barbados found room for school monitors; that wasn’t a problem.

“Not to say that these categories of workers were not needed, but teachers are in need. We need to have teachers in schools. And I trust that the Government of Barbados will find room for teachers who they say they don’t have the room for,” the BUT boss said.

Lovell insisted that if the teachers were not reassigned, classes in some schools would either have to be merged or not held at all.

“Essentially, programmes will have to be halted and this is not what we want, given the fact that we are talking about transforming education,” he contended.

“How can we transform the education system and not cater to those persons who are supposed to be drivers of the education reform initiative?”

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