Government to hire new teachers
Sep 05, 2011
THE Government is considering hiring temporary staff with requisite academic qualifications to step in if the striking teachers do not turn up to teach today.
By Raymond Baguma and Henry Mukasa
THE Government is considering hiring temporary staff with requisite academic qualifications to step in if the striking teachers do not turn up to teach today.
A stern circular issued by the education ministry warned that absentees will be deemed to have resigned and that they should vacate institutional houses where applicable.
The circular was distributed at a press briefing convened by the Prime Minister, Amama Mbabazi, on Saturday.
“In order to keep the school system running, temporary relief staff with requisite qualifications will be recruited. The Ministry of Education and Sports will issue guidelines on how to manage the recruitment process,†the circular said.
The circular was distributed to chief administrative officers (CAOs), town clerks, chairper¬sons of school boards of gov¬ernors, school management committees, head teachers and principals of primary, second¬ary and vocational institutions.
Addressing the press at Serena Conference Centre, Mbabazi directed teachers to call off the strike or risk being struck off the Government payroll.
The directive followed an earlier meeting with district chairpersons and resident district commissioners during which he issued the instruc¬tion.
This comes as teachers under the Uganda National Teachers Union (UNATU) vowed to continue with the strike as third term opens today.
Mbabazi said education is an essential service under the law and public service labour unions are required to make special provision to ensure minimum disruption of services.
“All staff who will not have reported on duty after seven calendar days from the start of the term without due author¬ity will be regarded to have absconded from duty and accordingly deemed to have resigned, thereby forfeiting all benefits, including pension and will be required to im¬mediately vacate institutional houses where applicable,†Mbabazi said.
The circular also directs CAOs, town clerks and the permanent secretary of the education ministry to initi¬ate the process of stopping payment of salaries to such teachers.
They are also expected to submit the names of the teach¬ers to the service commission to formalise removal from the public service.
CAOs are required to ag¬gregate teacher attendance reports and submit them daily to responsible officials in the ministries of education, public service and local government.
CAOs and town clerks are expected to deploy staff to each school to work closely with the various school man¬agement bodies to monitor teacher attendance.
Class monitors and prefects will be required to sign the daily classroom teacher’s at¬tendance registers at the end of each lesson.
Mbabazi said since the teachers first went on strike on July 28, the Government had been negotiating with them.
The teachers’ demands include a 100% salary incre¬ment, tax waiver on salaries, revision of Pay As You Earn tax threshold from sh130,000 to sh260,000.
The teachers also want prompt payment of capitation grants to schools, inclusion of more districts and urban councils as hard-to-reach areas.
Mbabazi said an agreement had been reached on all the teachers’ demands, except the salary increment.
“So, the Government consid¬ers this action illegal given that there was no deadlock in the negotiations to war¬rant this kind of action by UNATU,†Mbabazi said.
He said the Government would not selectively increase teachers’ salaries alone, add¬ing that a decision had been made to increase salaries of all public servants effective next financial year.
However, UNATU yesterday maintained their earlier posi¬tion, saying they would not turn up in the classrooms.
UNATU national organising secretary Gonza Ssensamba said they had requested the teachers countrywide not to conduct lessons.
“They are not going to teach. Instead, they will go to school and register. They are also going to take advantage of this situation and every staffroom will write a letter to the President and inform him what UNATU is saying is the reality,†Ssensamba said.
“We shall be at the schools registering attendance and reaffirming our position.â€
THE Government is considering hiring temporary staff with requisite academic qualifications to step in if the striking teachers do not turn up to teach today.
A stern circular issued by the education ministry warned that absentees will be deemed to have resigned and that they should vacate institutional houses where applicable.
The circular was distributed at a press briefing convened by the Prime Minister, Amama Mbabazi, on Saturday.
“In order to keep the school system running, temporary relief staff with requisite qualifications will be recruited. The Ministry of Education and Sports will issue guidelines on how to manage the recruitment process,†the circular said.
The circular was distributed to chief administrative officers (CAOs), town clerks, chairper¬sons of school boards of gov¬ernors, school management committees, head teachers and principals of primary, second¬ary and vocational institutions.
Addressing the press at Serena Conference Centre, Mbabazi directed teachers to call off the strike or risk being struck off the Government payroll.
The directive followed an earlier meeting with district chairpersons and resident district commissioners during which he issued the instruc¬tion.
This comes as teachers under the Uganda National Teachers Union (UNATU) vowed to continue with the strike as third term opens today.
Mbabazi said education is an essential service under the law and public service labour unions are required to make special provision to ensure minimum disruption of services.
“All staff who will not have reported on duty after seven calendar days from the start of the term without due author¬ity will be regarded to have absconded from duty and accordingly deemed to have resigned, thereby forfeiting all benefits, including pension and will be required to im¬mediately vacate institutional houses where applicable,†Mbabazi said.
The circular also directs CAOs, town clerks and the permanent secretary of the education ministry to initi¬ate the process of stopping payment of salaries to such teachers.
They are also expected to submit the names of the teach¬ers to the service commission to formalise removal from the public service.
CAOs are required to ag¬gregate teacher attendance reports and submit them daily to responsible officials in the ministries of education, public service and local government.
CAOs and town clerks are expected to deploy staff to each school to work closely with the various school man¬agement bodies to monitor teacher attendance.
Class monitors and prefects will be required to sign the daily classroom teacher’s at¬tendance registers at the end of each lesson.
Mbabazi said since the teachers first went on strike on July 28, the Government had been negotiating with them.
The teachers’ demands include a 100% salary incre¬ment, tax waiver on salaries, revision of Pay As You Earn tax threshold from sh130,000 to sh260,000.
The teachers also want prompt payment of capitation grants to schools, inclusion of more districts and urban councils as hard-to-reach areas.
Mbabazi said an agreement had been reached on all the teachers’ demands, except the salary increment.
“So, the Government consid¬ers this action illegal given that there was no deadlock in the negotiations to war¬rant this kind of action by UNATU,†Mbabazi said.
He said the Government would not selectively increase teachers’ salaries alone, add¬ing that a decision had been made to increase salaries of all public servants effective next financial year.
However, UNATU yesterday maintained their earlier posi¬tion, saying they would not turn up in the classrooms.
UNATU national organising secretary Gonza Ssensamba said they had requested the teachers countrywide not to conduct lessons.
“They are not going to teach. Instead, they will go to school and register. They are also going to take advantage of this situation and every staffroom will write a letter to the President and inform him what UNATU is saying is the reality,†Ssensamba said.
“We shall be at the schools registering attendance and reaffirming our position.â€