Arrears of $87 million owned by UWI to the West Indies Group of University Teachers (WIGUT) will be made in tranches by May 31 following yesterday’s accord on the issue, says Science and Tertiary Education Minister Fazal Karim yesterday. Karim delivered a statement in Parliament on the resolution of the impasse which had plagued UWI in recent days. He was responding to an Opposition question.
Karim said an accord was reached between UWI campus administration and WIGUT following a meeting yesterday at 10.30 am at the campus principal’s office. He said: “The arrears of $87 million for revised terms and conditions over the period August 1, 2011 and July 31, 2014 owed to academic, senior administrative and professional staff will be made in tranches by May 31, 2015.
“With respect to the non-academic staff, negotiations are currently underway with the campus administration and their bargaining unit. “The campus principal of the St Augustine Campus had advised that WIGUT will make an official release on the matter.” Karim thanked all parties involved. He was asked by the Opposition what role Government’s indebtedness played in the campus impasse.
Karim said Government stood resolute to ensure all students could study and had facilitated the financing with sums to pay WIGUT. He said he would supply further information at another session. The lecturers have been withholding the semester one grades of the students for more than three weeks. This has caused many students to have problems with registration and for some regional students have not been able to access their tuition funding for semester two.
This prompted two protests from students. On Monday a modest protest was held, with a little more than a score of students, around campus to demand their grades. On Wednesday, students from UWI’s various halls or residents, most of whom were regional students, had a protest, locking the campus’ main gates and blocking vehicles and people from entering the school’s compound.
A third demonstration happened on the campus’ compound when WIGUT members were joined by Oilfields Workers Trade Union (OWTU) members, who represents the Administrative, Technical and Service (ATS) staff of the campus.
—With reporting by Rachael Espinet