Teachers at West St. George Secondary School in St Vincent and the Grenadines (SVG) were expected to write to the Ministry of Education over concerns that the government’s vaccine mandate could see educators lose their jobs and accrued benefits.
The teachers have warned that they are prepared to continue their “sit-in” which they started last Friday if the Ministry refuses to meet with them.
Last Friday, vaccinated and unvaccinated teachers at the school, some wearing black, staged a “sit-in” in protest against the COVID-19 vaccine mandate, which could see some of them lose their jobs if they do not take the jab.
“We take this opportunity to remind the school’s administration of our value as a staff and allow the Ministry of Education to have a glimpse of what the school system will look like in the absence of a driven and dedicated workforce,” said a November 25 letter to the chief personnel officer, signed by 29 teachers at the school.
Media reports said that at least 11 of the 31 teachers at the school are unvaccinated and they have been warned that they should be vaccinated by Friday or risk losing their jobs and benefits.
The teachers said that the vaccine law “threatens to undermine that cohesion and puts at risk the anticipated advancement of the student that we had envisioned, at the start of the face-to-face return to school”.
