The Vanuatu Teachers' Union and its members remained concerned about the impact of the dispute on students. Photo: Facebook / Ministry of Education & Training, Vanuatu
The Vanuatu Teachers' Union (VTU) is warning its nationwide members' strike keeping teachers out of classrooms may roll into a third year if the government continues to stall on addressing employment claims.
The strike, over a range of remuneration issues, started in June last year. Issues include basic pay rates and remuneration entitlements for members who were principals and deputy principals and worked away from their home island or villages.
VTU secretary-general Jonathan Yona said at the most recent meeting between the union, and the Ministry of Education and the Teaching Service Commission on 4 December, government officials claimed all outstanding teachers' claims had been paid.
However, Yona said that simply is not true, and union representatives have had to follow-up with evidence showing more than 100 claims are outstanding.
Additionally, about 70 teachers still have backpay and salary amounts owing, he said.
"They came up with their data that they've paid all the teachers claims, and they put back all the pathway for teachers who were suspended, and [that] they think it's best for us to discuss the collective bargaining agreement.
"However, at our side, we've identified teachers who still haven't [been] paid any salaries yet, and a good number… who haven't got their back pay [and] salaries."
Inconsistencies between the union, which has abour 2600 members, and government agencies' versions of events has been an ongoing theme in the 18-month saga.
The dispute has gone all the way to the Vanuatu Supreme Court, which in May found in favour of the union. It ruled the industrial action was legal after quashing a Teaching Service Commission decision to suspend and terminate over 600 teachers for participating in a strike.
The Teaching Service Commission is the government agency responsible for employing teachers in Vanuatu.
RNZ Pacific has contacted the Vanuatu government for comment and has had no response.
Yona said the lack of progress at last week's meeting was frustrating and had resulted in a "verification team" working through the weekend and then into the beginning of this week to reconcile the different data sets.
"We told the government last Thursday: 'It's not the union that is failing the education [system] now, it's you - the Ministry of Education and the Teaching Service Commission. You're not doing your job properly that causes all this delay to teachers going back into the classrooms."
Yona said the union and its members remained concerned about the impact of the dispute on students. He said many of the teachers recruited to fill-in for members on strike were teacher aides or were not properly qualified.
"We are concerned about the standard, and we expect there will be a downfall."
The next meeting between the union and the government officials had been set down for Friday.
Yona hoped any discrepancies around data from the Ministry of Education and the Teaching Service Commission would be sorted by then, so the parties could move onto discussing the terms of the collective bargaining agreement.
"If all these shortfalls of payments and backpay for teachers who have been suspended and those that have not had their salaries back continues…then it might [affect] the start of 2026 academic year, which will begin on the 26th of January 2026.
"We told the government that this time it's not the VTU that is delaying all this, it's the government because they haven't paid all the claims."
