Teachers expecting K7 million from outstanding fares

THE Madang provincial administration has this week to pay teachers their outstanding leave fares of more than K7 million, according to teachers association official Remsy Oss.
Oss said more than 5000 teachers who boycotted classes at the start of the term agreed to return to work on the condition that they were to be paid by this week.
“We had agreed to return to class and let the government facilitate our outstanding leave fares,” he said.
“We gave them seven weeks. This is the last week.”
The teachers have agreed that if the outstanding leave fares are not paid this week, they will not boycott classes again.
“We don’t want to jeopardise students’ learning,” Oss said.
He said the list of teachers entitled for leave fares in 2017 and 2018 had been submitted to the finance section.
“The amount to be paid is more than K7 million,” Oss said.
Madang acting provincial administrator Joseph Bonomane said when he took up office last month, one of the priorities he was to attend to was the outstanding leave fares.
Bonomane said the administration was in the process of sorting out the outstanding payment.
Oss said the teachers had agreed to return to work in good faith.
“The government was to facilitate our outstanding leave fares while we teach,” he said.