Ruel Reid - File

OCHO RIOS, St. Ann:

Immediate past President of the Jamaica Teachers' Association (JTA), Ruel Reid, has urged Senator Dwight Nelson, president of the Jamaica Confederation of Trade Unions (JCTU), to clarify statements he made that police officers are special cases and that no Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) should prevent them from being properly paid.

In a letter to the Editor published in The Gleaner on Monday, Senator Nelson said police do not deserve the treatment meted out against them as it relates to salary and fringe benefits. He suggested that the Minister of Finance and other stakeholders agree on proper wages and fringe benefits "for these courageous officers and implement them". Other unionised groups he said, should adhere to the normal approaches.

Contradiction

"The president of the Confederation of Trade Unions needs to clarify this statement because it is a contradiction," Mr. Reid said while delivering his outgoing address at the 42nd annual conference of the JTA, which ended yesterday at the Sunset Jamaica Grande Resort, St. Ann.

Mr. Reid told The Gleaner that a clause in the MoU states that no public sector worker outside the JCTU should be treated favourably, so there should be no excuse for the police. However, he noted that the MoU speaks to peculiar items, and that is what the JTA is negotiating for but the JCTU is against this.

The JTA and the Police Federation have been at odds with the Government over salary negotiations for months. The Government had proposed a 14 per cent to 16 per cent increase in the first year for principals and vice-principals, with eight per cent in the second year. For teachers, the proposed rate was between 14 and 22 per cent in the first year and five to eight per cent in the second. But an overwhelming number of JTA delegates rejected the offer at a special delegates' conference, last month.

Dr. Omar Davies, Minister of Finance and Planning, last week reportedly agreed in principle to a one-off book grant of $30,000 for each teacher. However, the Government later said it could not afford it and has since offered the teachers a $7,500 book allowance.

- P. F.