Dear Editor,
The Ministry of Education Job Fair was a slap in the face to trained, unemployed teachers. Many frustrated unemployed teachers journeyed from as far as Hanover to the Ministry of Education office in Kingston to attend a job fair. They seemed highly motivated based on the prospect of meeting various employers so as to secure interviews.
These teachers left feeling insulted by comments made by Minister Ronald Thwaites and the argumentative tone he used to articulate himself. The minister has led this group of teachers to believe that he is not empathic to their situation and he is at war with the teachers who are currently in the system.
These trained teachers have now accepted the reality that there will be no teaching jobs available for the next three years. These teachers need viable job opportunities so that they can gain meaningful employment.
Minister Ronald Thwaites placed emphasis on voluntarism. but let's be realistic. Even though voluntarism can be one way of securing a job, it is not suited for everyone. There are many of these teachers who took loans to attend school, borrowed monies from family members, have family dependents, and have not yet settle the balance on their tuition fees. What these teachers want is to secure a job, it may not pay much but, in the interim, it can help clear their debts.
The unemployment crisis in Jamaica has reached soaring levels; it needs to be adequately addressed. It cannot be that quick fixes and short-term alternatives are sought to remedy this problem; long-term feasible solutions are needed. These teachers were frustrated before the job fair; they are now left feeling disappointed, upset and discouraged. The Minister of Education and his ministry has added further insult to injury.
S A Williams
Santa Cruz
shana.williams26@yahoo.com
Job fair was insult to injury
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The Ministry of Education Job Fair was a slap in the face to trained, unemployed teachers. Many frustrated unemployed teachers journeyed from as far as Hanover to the Ministry of Education office in Kingston to attend a job fair. They seemed highly motivated based on the prospect of meeting various employers so as to secure interviews.
These teachers left feeling insulted by comments made by Minister Ronald Thwaites and the argumentative tone he used to articulate himself. The minister has led this group of teachers to believe that he is not empathic to their situation and he is at war with the teachers who are currently in the system.
These trained teachers have now accepted the reality that there will be no teaching jobs available for the next three years. These teachers need viable job opportunities so that they can gain meaningful employment.
Minister Ronald Thwaites placed emphasis on voluntarism. but let's be realistic. Even though voluntarism can be one way of securing a job, it is not suited for everyone. There are many of these teachers who took loans to attend school, borrowed monies from family members, have family dependents, and have not yet settle the balance on their tuition fees. What these teachers want is to secure a job, it may not pay much but, in the interim, it can help clear their debts.
The unemployment crisis in Jamaica has reached soaring levels; it needs to be adequately addressed. It cannot be that quick fixes and short-term alternatives are sought to remedy this problem; long-term feasible solutions are needed. These teachers were frustrated before the job fair; they are now left feeling disappointed, upset and discouraged. The Minister of Education and his ministry has added further insult to injury.
S A Williams
Santa Cruz
shana.williams26@yahoo.com
Job fair was insult to injury
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