UWI, UTech academic staff take industrial action over compensation delay

Academic staff at the University of Technology, Jamaica (UTech) and The University of the West Indies (UWI) have taken industrial action amid growing frustration over delays in resolving outstanding compensation matters.

The work stoppage began yesterday.

At UTech, the University of Technology Academic Staff Union (UTASU) says its action is also linked to the prolonged suspension of an ordinance governing academic promotions.

Dr Tasheika Burris-Melville, public relations officer for UTASU, said the union’s action stems from two outstanding matters.

The first is Ordinance 1999-16, which deals with academic promotion.

According to Burris-Melville, the ordinance has remained suspended for six years, leaving academic staff without an effective mechanism to progress professionally.

She said while UTech management has done work on the matter, it remains unresolved, and the union is dissatisfied with the continued delay.

The second issue, she said, is the failure to settle the Government of Jamaica’s compensation package for UTech academic staff for the 2022-2025 period.

Burris-Melville said while compensation arrangements for most public-sector workers for that period have been settled, UTech academic staff remain without an agreement.

She said the delay has become more concerning as other public-sector groups have moved on to negotiations for the 2025-2027 period.

She added that UTech academic staff are also affected by the fact that their compensation is indexed to that of UWI, where a settlement for the 2022-2025 period is also outstanding.

Meanwhile, Professor Paul Brown, president of the West Indies Group of University Teachers, Jamaica (WIGUT Jamaica), confirmed that academic staff at UWI initiated industrial action on Monday, August 10.

Brown, who is also a professor of molecular biology at UWI, said the action is directly related to delays with the compensation review.

He said final documents relating to the review were submitted to the Ministry of Finance in November 2025, noting that the union’s most recent meeting with the Public Investment Unit and the Ministry of Finance was held on June 1 this year.

Brown said the union had warned that normal operations at UWI in Jamaica could not be guaranteed when the new academic year began if there was no progress on the matter.

He said the union gave the Ministry of Finance until July 31 to respond and continue discussions, but no meeting date had been called up to Monday.

According to Brown, the Ministry had previously indicated that it would complete a review of the documents by August 3 and meet with the union during this week.

However, with no date forthcoming, members held an emergency general meeting last Tuesday and voted by a significant majority to take industrial action.

Brown said the decision followed what members considered an unsatisfactory response from the Ministry and a lack of progress in the negotiations.

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