UTech employees disgruntled over retroactive salaries back at work

Infuriated administrative, technical, and ancillary staff at the University of Technology (UTech), who protested on Monday over the non-payment of retroactive salaries owed to them for three years, have been instructed to return to work.

Janet Grayson, president of the University of Technology Administrative Staff Association, gave the directive to members following a meeting involving the association, campus administration, and the Ministry of Labour this morning.

While no definite resolution has been reached regarding the payment of the retroactive salaries, Grayson said further dialogue is expected with additional government stakeholders later this week.

"We have not finalised a date as yet, but we are awaiting a response from the (Labour) Ministry to make contact with the other parent ministries [Ministries of Finance and Education] so that we can finalize a meeting date between now and Friday," she said.

This morning's meeting lasted about two hours, said Grayson, who explained that despite yielding to the request for workers to return to work, she is still not satisfied with the ongoing communication, and that affected members remain resolute.

"At least we are in a better place because, at this juncture, they are asking that the parent ministries be a part of the conversation and discussion, and we prefer that because we were previously unable to get the Ministry of Education and the Ministry of Finance to meet with us and the university at the table. Now that the Ministry of Labour is involved, it is trying to get them to meet with us together," she explained, adding that she had hoped this would have been done today.

"We remain resolute, and the members are standing our ground together until this matter is successfully resolved. We are asking for one of our tranches to be paid in March and the other in May, and we are standing by that for now," she asserted.

Droves of protesting workers, mostly dressed in black, blocked and padlocked the entrances of the university yesterday morning.

They argued that they were fed up with the Government and the university's failure to provide any indication of when they would receive retroactive payments, which have been owed to them for years.

- Corey Robinson

Follow The Gleaner on X, formerly Twitter, and Instagram @JamaicaGleaner and on Facebook @GleanerJamaica. Send us a message on WhatsApp at 1-876-499-0169 or email us at onlinefeedback@gleanerjm.com or editors@gleanerjm.com.