BUT: ‘Meeting Has Been Postponed Indefinitely’
The Bermuda Union of Teachers [BUT] said they “received notice that our regularly scheduled Joint Consultative Committee meeting has been postponed indefinitely,” adding that these “meetings are postponed with alarming regularity by the Department of Education.”
A spokesperson said, “As of 12:04 p.m. The Bermuda Union of Teachers [BUT] received notice that our regularly scheduled Joint Consultative Committee [JCC] meeting has been postponed indefinitely. This meeting has been scheduled since 28th January, 2020 and was due to happen today at 1:00 p.m. These highly important JCC meetings are postponed with alarming regularity by the Department of Education.
“Furthermore, we were due to meet with Management Consulting Services today at 3:00 p.m. and that meeting was also postponed. Both these negligent postponements were made at the last minute, and this Union has become thoroughly frustrated with this harmful practice.
“These are examples of the lack of consistency and commitment practiced by the Department of Education in its dealings with the BUT in regard to the concerns of teachers.
“This dismissive attitude has resulted in an array of unresolved issues, which includes the Dellwood Middle School situation, the Elliot Primary School situation, the longstanding issues with our Para-educators and Educational Therapist Assistants [ETAs], and various other pressing concerns this Union needs to have urgently and adequately addressed by the Department of Education.
“The BUT is always ready to meet, to consult, and to deliberate in good faith toward reasonable solutions for all parties. However, this is not a one man show. If one hand continues to get washed in isolation, there’s no point in trying to do a job that requires two clean hands! To put it succinctly; we need the cooperation of both parties.
“This meeting, which was quite suddenly and unexpectedly shut down, was expected to bring answers and resolution to the long-standing concerns involving our Para-educators and Educational Therapist Assistants and their Job Descriptions.
“Until we have a real, concrete commitment from the Department of Education our students, the Bermuda Public School System, and our society as a whole will always be in disarray.
“We continue to encourage our members to remain resilient in the face of an appalling and frustrating lack of human resources and a disheartening lack of human decency.”
Shows that this government/does not have the best interest of our children at heart. Take education out of governments hands now. The private schools educate their kids cheaper than government why. Parents need to get involved and start making government accountable for our children’s education. I wonder if the Peoples Campaign can get some matches organized.
Be careful what you wish (vote) for, cause you might just get it.
Right here, two of the main reasons for the huge difference in achievement from children in private schools and those in public schools. On the one hand you have the BUT who will protect woefully inadequate teachers and strike/walk out of schools in a heartbeat. On the other hand you have the Department of Education, mostly made up of teachers who failed in the classroom but who have friends in high places. The private schools are not unionized and are not run by the Department of Education: therefore, an inadequate private school teacher does not last long and forward planning is engineered by senior staff who were promoted on merit not which school they attended or which church they worship at.
You get what you voted for….
We have neither the WILL or the HEART to fix education .At best the Department of Education works best for the teachers while the children suffer . We have had control over public education for over 75 years , and yet we still complain about it not working . New buildings , higher wages , more professional day off , more vocation time , more sick days off , more para professionals in the class rooms ,and the lists goes on . Yet we have fewer days of actual teaching in the class room . WHY ?
“Both these negligent postponements were made at the last minute, and this Union has become thoroughly frustrated with this harmful practice.”
I wonder if it has anything to do with your wildcat strike?
“The BUT is always ready to meet, to consult, and to deliberate in good faith toward reasonable solutions for all parties”
Or strike without warning, depending on the mood.
The BUT’s actions belie its words.
25-11 and yall thought the grass was greener on the other side..