By VENUS HONORE-GOPIE Tuesday, December 1 2009

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EDUCATED PROTEST: ECCE teachers protest yesterday outside the Education Ministry head office in Port-of-Spain over contract terms of employment being ...

ARMED with placards and resolve, several Early Childhood Care and Education Centres (ECCE) teachers yesterday protested in front of the Education Ministry in Port-of-Spain over the ministry’s plan to introduce contract employment.

About 150 ECCE teachers were joined by members of the TT Unified teachers Association (TTUTA) in the protest. Not even a sharp downpour fazed the protestors. “We will keep on struggling until we get a better deal. Our union makes us strong, we will stand in the rain until we get a better deal,” an ECCE teacher said.

Bus loads of teachers from schools across the country arrived outside the ministry dressed in red for the protest. The ministry, they said, is planning to transition existing teachers into a new ECCE structure — which features a new curriculum and contract terms of employment.

TTUTA president Rouston Job said they are advocating the plight of the ECCE teachers some of whom have been labouring for several years, on issues as working condition, poor salaries and the threat of contract terms of employment. Job said TTUTA was against the ministry’s decision to give the teachers a contract and increase the monthly salaries which are part of the new curriculum.

Job claimed some teachers have even been intimidated into signing the contract. “We are ensuring this doesn’t happen. We are asking the ministry to pull back those contracts and let us talk it over and then we would see where it goes from there,” Job said.

According to General Secretary, TTUTA Peter Wilson on November 17, ministry officials started visiting ECCE schools and by November 19, letters were distributed to teachers informing them of their acceptance to work on three-year contracts with increased salaries.

Wilson said if ECCE teachers are now supposed to be part of the seamless education system they should be treated just like teachers in the primary and secondary school system.

TTUTA presently has no bargaining status for ECCE teachers but count among its membership more than 200 ECCE teachers and can make representation for individual members. He said a core committee has been formed by teachers which has been seeking a meeting with Education Minister Esther Le Gendre for the last four months.

In a release, the ministry stated that Cabinet approved increases of 90 to 100 percent in salaries to qualified staff implementing the new curriculum and meetings have been held subsequently to share details of new arrangements. It stated that the contract offered represents many improvements for teachers currently working without formal contracts, on a month to month basis, with limited benefits.

The release further stated that the ECCE sector presently does not come under the Teaching Service and as such there are no established positions for public service employment, “hence contract service for three-year renewable terms is being offered.”