Gov’t files appeal in teachers’ strike case 

The delay in completing and disseminating a written judgement by Justice Sandil Kissoon had stalled plans to appeal the ruling which prevents the government from deducting the salaries of striking teachers.

Now, one month after the ruling was handed down, the judgement is available and the Attorney General Chambers moved Wednesday afternoon to file the application to appeal the April 19, 2024 decision in the name of Chief Education Officer Saddam Hussain.

The government is requesting a stay of the decision until the appeal is heard and determined and a summons was prepared for service to the GTU.

“Finally, the honourable Justice Sandil Kissoon has made available his judgment in the GTU (Guyana Teachers’ Union) case.

“So the way is now absolutely clear for us to proceed with the appeal and the application for the stay of execution,” Attorney General and Minister of Legal Affairs, Anil Nandlall, SC, said Tuesday evening.

During his weekly ‘Issues in the News’ programme, Nandall said copies of the 134-page written judgment were disseminated on Monday.

In the application, Hussain contends that the judge erred and misdirected himself in law when he initially failed to strike out the application since the issues were not properly pleaded.

In the ruling, Judge Kissoon claimed that that the government acted “arbitrarily” when it halted the automatic deduction and transferral of union dues from teachers’ salaries.

This was the second concern brought by the Union in its case.

Among other things, the Judge ordered that there should be no deduction or withholding of teachers’ salaries since doing so would be “arbitrary, unlawful, unreasonable and unconstitutional.”

The government’s contention essentially, is that having allowed the matter, Judge Kissoon did not address the distinction between a “right to strike” and a “freedom to strike.”