BSTU head urges admin reforms as lapses disrupt school salaries

Teachers are going months without pay because of administrative failures in school payroll systems, prompting the teachers union leader in the Senate to call for enforceable timelines and faster redress under the proposed Protection of Wages Bill.

Independent Senator Mary-Anne Redman, president of the Barbados Secondary Teachers’ Union (BSTU), recounted a catalogue of administrative failures in the education system, including widespread delays, erroneous salary calculations, and missing allowances, which have left public school educators struggling to meet basic living expenses.

Senator Redman sketched out a crisis undermining staff retention in critical subjects, warning that talented young educators qualified in high-demand areas such as mathematics, physics, and geography are leaving the public system because “they cannot work for nothing”.

Addressing the chamber virtually, she highlighted systemic breakdowns causing distress across schools, placing much of the blame on administrative lapses within boards of management.

“To interfere with money in any way that people have already worked for is a problem that Caribbean employees should never have to face, given our history,” Senator Redman declared. “It is, however, sadly, too often one that trade unionists have to face.”

The senator outlined how the absence of firm legislative enforcement has allowed recurring payroll issues to persist, particularly for temporary educators. Inaction by some secretary-treasurers to boards of management — who are responsible for entering worker data into payment portals — was cited as a primary cause of the widespread disillusionment across the profession.

The BSTU receives monthly complaints from educators who have gone unpaid for extended periods because of delays in processing paperwork for school reassignments, Senator Redman told lawmakers.

“Some teachers go for months without pay. Needless to say, this is very frustrating, especially to young teachers who, in the first instance, don’t even find the teaching salary attractive or the working conditions, and then the added non-payment is a major turn-off.”

The issues extend beyond delayed compensation. Senator Redman noted that even when salaries are paid, educators frequently face late disbursements, missing annual increments, and uncollected acting allowances for senior roles held for years.

In June alone, 21 temporary teachers from a single school received their salaries well after the scheduled payday, incurring bank penalties, damaged credit ratings, and heavy tax deductions on subsequent lump-sum back pay, she revealed.

Linking the issue to international labour standards, Senator Redman grounded her speech in the International Labour Organisation’s (ILO) concept of “decent work”, citing Conventions 95 and 173 regarding wage protection and employer insolvency. She argued that withholding timely payment for completed work is inherently exploitative and counterproductive to societal stability.

“There is nothing more exploitative, counterproductive, and indecent about the employment relationship than causing people to work without fair, timely payment for work done,” she said.

While acknowledging recent improvements from the Ministry of Education and the Ministry of the Public Service, Redman said the new Protection of Wages Bill must provide concrete redress for state employees.

The legislation, which modernises the law by repealing the older Cap. 351 framework, mandates recurring pay dates, regulates deductions, and enhances the powers of the chief labour officer.

But because public officers lack direct access to the Employment Rights Tribunal, Senator Redman raised concern about lengthy grievance procedures under the Public Service Act, citing a BSTU grievance initiated in 2016 that remains unresolved.

To address these administrative failures, she called for targeted structural reforms to speed up resolution and strengthen accountability within school administration.

The implementation of an expedited grievance mechanism designed strictly for wage disputes was among her key recommendations. Referencing recent commentary by public analysts, she urged Parliament to consider a fast-tracked process to bypass traditional delays and deal exclusively with payment matters when the state is the defaulting employer.

The BSTU also renewed calls for the immediate establishment of the long-delayed Teaching Service Commission to overhaul human resource management across the education system.

“It is over 50 years in the making,” Senator Redman said, adding that establishing the body would “relieve the pressure of the over 4 000 public officers who are teachers from the purview of the Public Service Commission”.

She said dedicated oversight would significantly reduce the frustration, disillusionment, and desperation teachers experience when trying to receive a fair day’s pay for a fair day’s work on time.

In addition to commission oversight, the BSTU president urged the government to convert school secretary-treasurers into public officers to enforce stricter operational standards. This administrative shift would ensure greater accountability in the execution of their duties and prevent individual inaction from compromising workers’ livelihoods.

Senator Redman also highlighted the need for mandatory pre-appointment training for all members of boards of management, particularly chairpersons and their deputies. She said board members must understand their legal responsibilities, financial regulations, and personnel relations, noting that many remain unaware they are directly responsible for the conduct and performance of their secretary-treasurers.

Despite her critiques of implementation and enforcement, Senator Redman expressed full support for the Protection of Wages Bill, describing it as an essential step towards safeguarding worker dignity and strengthening wage protection in law.

(RR)