Marlin apologises for the delay
PHILIPSBURG--Education Commissioner William Marlin apologised to teachers on Thursday for the delay in the payment of their cost-of-living adjustment, which was due at the end of January.
He assured that the payment would be made as soon as the 2010 budget was approved. An Island Council meeting on the budget is expected to be held before the end of March. Marlin, an educator by training, said he understood the teachers' frustrations at not yet receiving their payment, but it would be forthcoming soon.
"There are no ifs or buts about the payment," Marlin said. "The budget has not yet been approved, but it is automatic that it will be paid once the budget is finalised.
The Windward Islands Teachers Union (WITU) has publicly expressed concern about the delay in the payment.
In the meantime, Department of Education head Quincy Harrigan said official correspondence hadn't yet been sent out to school boards or to the teachers' union officially apprising them of the developments, as the department hadn't received any official correspondence on the matter. However, he assured that the matter was being looked into.
