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Teachers to resume work after 100-day strike

19 Oct 2021

 
  • Teaching and exam duties to commence on 25 Oct.
  • Online education to also restart
  • Claims decision taken on behalf of students’ education
  BY Buddhika Samaraweera The Teachers’ and Principals’ Trade Union Alliance (TPTUA) has decided to relax the trade union actions initiated by teachers and principals demanding a solution to their salary anomaly issue, which marks the 100th day today (19), and resume teaching activities and examination-related work from 25 October. Speaking at a media briefing held yesterday (18), Ceylon Teachers’ Union (CTU) General Secretary Joseph Stalin stated that the TPTUA has decided to ease the ongoing trade union actions since the education of millions of students must be continued. “Currently, the Government and its allies are trying to intimidate us. They have been using various tactics to sabotage these trade union actions, but we are not afraid of any of those threats. We, as the trade unions, made this decision to ease the trade union actions since we think of students whose education has collapsed for nearly two years,” he said. However, they have warned that they hope to launch a number of other trade union actions from time to time such as protests, strikes, and parental awareness programmes from 25 October. The first in a series of such protests will, according to the Ceylon Teachers’ Service Union (CTSU), be held across the country on 25 October at 2 p.m. He further commented on how the trade union actions currently being implemented will be implemented again in the future. “Accordingly, teachers and principals will not report to work on 21 and 22 October, but will report to work on 25 October. From 25 October, even though we will carry out teaching and examination-related duties, many other trade union actions will be launched from time to time such as protests, strikes, and awareness programmes.” Stalin also stated that it is the position of the teachers’ and principals’ trade unions that the salary increase recommended by the Cabinet Sub-Committee appointed to look into the salary anomaly issue should be given at once. Meanwhile, CTSU General Secretary Mahinda Jayasinghe, also expressing his views during a media briefing, noted that while teachers and principals would report to work on 25 October, a series of islandwide protests are planned to be held on 25 October at 2 p.m. He also said that from 25 October onwards, online teaching activities will resume and the duties of submitting applications for the Grade Five Scholarship and General Certificate of Education (GCE) Advanced Level (A/L) examinations will also resume. Nearly 30 teachers’ and principals’ trade unions have embarked on a number of trade union actions, including withdrawing from all physical and online teaching activities and examination-related duties, demanding a solution to the teacher-principal salary anomaly issue since 12 July 2021.


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