• Teacher-principal salary anomaly on agenda
• Failure to agree set to intensify trade union action
• Trade union action not to harm students: Stalin 

BY Buddhika Samaraweera

 

Agitating teachers’ trade unions have been belatedly granted a meeting with Education Minister Prof. G. L. Peiris tomorrow (20) with several important matters set to be discussed and a failure to reach an agreement potentially leading to an escalation of the ongoing strike action.

Several teachers’ trade unions have warned that if they do not receive a positive response to the issue of teacher-principal salary anomaly during the discussion they would initiate a trade union action that goes beyond the current withdrawal from all online teaching activities. The trade union action launched by the teachers to withdraw from online teaching activities based on several demands is being implemented for the eighth day today. Speaking at a media briefing in Colombo yesterday (18), Secretary of the Ceylon Teachers Union (CTU), Joseph Stalin said that the withdrawal from online teaching activities would continue until a permanent solution is provided to the teacher-principal salary anomaly issue that has existed for more than 24 years. “This trade union action is not at all intended to harm students. However, if the government does not listen to the fair demands of teachers and principals, we will have to resort to such action. If our demands are addressed, we will call off the strike as soon as possible,” he said. Stalin also said that a discussion would be held with Prof. Peiris, Education Ministry Secretary, Prof. Kapila Perera and a group of officials tomorrow and if there is no positive response to their issues, they hoped to launch a massive trade union action that would go beyond the withdrawal from online teaching activities, on 22 July. The Ceylon Teachers’ Services Union (CTSU) is also scheduled to participate in the discussion with the Education Minister and CTSU secretary Mahinda Jayasinghe said that if their issues are not resolved, a massive trade union action would be launched from 22 July. Speaking at the media briefing in Colombo yesterday, Jayasinghe said that despite the launch of a number of trade union actions demanding a solution to the teacher-principal salary anomaly issue for many years, no government has paid attention to it. “The salary of a teacher (Grade 1) who has been in the teaching service for a long period of 15 years is just Rs. 44,950, the starting salary of a graduate teacher is Rs. 32,200 and the salary of a person who enters the teaching service after qualifying from colleges of education is Rs. 30,300. Are these salaries fair? Shouldn’t the teachers deserve more?” he asked. Commenting on the current trade union action to withdraw from online teaching activities, Jayasinghe said that the trade union action has proven to be extremely effective and would continue. He also warned that thousands of teachers would be coming to Colombo on 22 July, for a massive protest if their demands are not met with positive response at the meeting to be held tomorrow. Teachers’ and principals’ trade unions had decided to withdraw from all online teaching activities from 12 July until further notice in protest of the arrest of a group of trade unions and student activists including Stalin. In addition to online teaching activities, the teachers and principals had withdrawn from duties related to sending applications for the examinations including the General Certificate of Education (GCE) Advanced Level (A/L) examination online. Teachers and principals had also withdrawn from teaching activities at regional learning centres recently established by the Ministry of Education with the aim of facilitating students who find it difficult to pursue their education online. There are about 2,160 regional learning centres that employ nearly 30,000 teachers and principals and the teachers and principals had withdrawn from those duties too.