SWEETEN THE DEAL
Crawford urges Gov’t to use incentives to entice teachers to remain in local schools
Published:Tuesday | September 5, 2023 | 12:10 AMSashana Small/Staff Reporter
Opposition Spokesman on Education Damion Crawford is disputing suggestions by the Government that there is a surplus of teachers to fill vacant positions this school year.
Education Minister Fayval Williams last week noted that some 854 teachers had tendered resignations between January and September, but revealed that there were approximately 1,700 teachers available to fill those positions.
But stating that the Government has “underestimated and undercalculated the scarcities that will exist in the schools moving forward”, Crawford said this figure does not take into account the number of teachers who have gone on leave and those who have retired.
According to Crawford, in addition to the 854 teachers who have resigned, 1,500 have been given leave and approximately 400 have retired.
“So 3,000 persons available last year … based on resignation, leave and retirement, will not be available this year. Yet, the best-case scenario for adjusting numbers presented by the minister of education is 1,693, suggesting a shortage of over 1,300 teachers moving forward,” he stated at a press conference called by the opposition People’s National Party (PNP) on Monday.
Pointing to 2022 when Jamaica recorded the highest number of teacher resignations at 1,538, he noted the figure reported as late as October 2022 was 1,310, suggesting that there may be more resignations to come this year.
“We must understand that teachers do not send resignation letters in the mail to the ministry, but to the schools, which, therefore, leads to a gap between the time the school knows and the time that report is sent to the ministry. No request has been made by the ministry for immediate day-to-day updating of the number of teachers that have resigned,” he said.
Crawford added that, instead of creating an attractive and competitive environment that encourages teachers to stay, the Government has cultivated a number of push factors that force them to leave. He said that foremost among them is the compensation restructuring exercise, which, he argued, created distrust between the educators and their employer.
But Crawford believes much can be done to incentivise teachers to remain in the public sector, and suggested that the Government provide motor vehicle concessions of varying percentages to teachers, to reflect the number of years they have served in the public sector.
“This increased access to motor vehicles would improve upon the livelihood for our Jamaica to be more competitive for our teachers,” he said.
And, in addition to upgrading staffrooms to create a comfortable environment for teachers, he said the Government should also consider the reduction of teachers’ student debt by between five and 10 per cent for every year they stay within the public education system.
He further suggested that the National Housing Trust (NHT) also be tapped to provide additional “sweeteners” for the profession. He suggested that teachers get a special limit of $14 million from the trust, with an interest rate of one per cent, which would transform to a normal loan once the teacher leaves the classroom.
Currently, contributors can access up to $7.5 million from the NHT.
Crawford believes the Government can also negotiate a package deal with telecom providers for teachers to receive free Internet service as a necessary tool of trade. Creating teacher-public sector rent housing schemes with rent control strategies in desirable communities through the Housing Association of Jamaica is another option he said the Government could explore to increase teacher retention.
In addition to further negotiations with private sector entities to offer more discounts to teachers, which he said will increase the likelihood of them feeling “appreciated by broader society”, he urged the Government to also consider a strong marketing campaign to show its high regard for teachers and encourage them to stay.
Crawford also suggests that the Government pay teachers a lump sum salary at the beginning of summer, to curtail the number of last-minute resignations at the end of August. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs could also be brought on board to hold bilateral talks with overseas recruiters to encourage them to make their decisions by the first of July to prevent late-August resignations.
“The reality we’re currently facing suggests that the Government is the weakest in the partnership for education as we enter into the new school year,” he stated.