Lead by example, teachers

 

From N Siva Subramaniam

As former secretary-general of the National Union of the Teaching Profession (NUTP) and also former president of Cuepacs, it saddens me to see the current state of affairs of the teacher’s union, which was formed in 1974 to fight for the rights of the ordinary teacher.

Past leaders worked very hard to build the union to be the one true voice of teachers everywhere, especially its 280,000-strong members.

It has come to my understanding that a directive has been issued by the chief secretary of the government, rejecting an application from the NUTP to allow those currently holding positions for the 2020-2023 session, but are in grades DG42, DG44, DG48, DG52 and holding administrative posts in schools and district education departments, to stay on.

The directive dated Aug 5, 2021, shows that the chief secretary has given NUTP plenty of time after the previous 2017-2020 session.

As a teacher and civil servant, it is our duty to lead by example and follow the rules set by our superiors.

A letter from the office of the deputy director-general of education dated March 28, 2019 clearly states that officers in grades DG41 to DG48 are allowed to be union members and also, hold key positions in the union.

However, the involvement of school administrators is seen as a violation of para 3(i)(f) of a joint decision made by the Public Service Department (JPA) and the chief secretary in relation to Section 27(2)(f) of the Trade Union Act 1959.

The decision also clearly states that officers holding the DG52 grade cannot even be members of the union.

For the education sector, there is time-based promotion for the officers and the grades automatically go up based on the number of years.

For senior officers serving in the education sector, there will be an automatic grade jump and of course, some do even get appointed as school administrators, holding various posts as department heads, senior assistants and school heads.

The question here is why has NUTP been issued with this directive from the chief secretary? This letter has been sent out to all NUTP branches and also, NUTP headquarters. In relation to this, an appeal from NUTP is clearly stated in the directive sent by the chief secretary on Aug 5, 2021.

The reason is simply that an administrator would not be able to voice out the problems of an ordinary teacher. An ordinary teacher would be better suited to listen to the problems of their fellow educators.

An administrator holding a key position in the union would have a conflict of interest as he or she represents the leadership of the school and reports to the education department. They have duties to discharge and guidelines to adhere to as heads of the school, therefore they can never speak up on the issues faced by a common teacher.

Today, the voice of the common teacher has been drowned out due to a particular issue plaguing the union. A directive from the top civil servant in the country clearly shows that there is a situation in the union that needs to be addressed.

There is also a reason why the trade union has such guidelines and the act to adhere to, as those holding administrative posts in schools, district education offices (PPD), state education departments (KPN) and the education ministry, cannot bring forward issues faced by teachers at grassroots level.

Most of the time, teachers’ issues are between the administrators and the teachers themselves in schools. So, in this case, an administrator, if holding a post in the union, cannot defend the teachers.

They will always side with the PPD, JPN, or the ministry. If there are any problems between teachers and the PPD, JPN and the ministry, these union officials cannot stand by the teachers.

What baffles me the most is why, when other unions such as the one in Sarawak have followed the directive and Trade Union Act 1959, why can’t we as teachers adhere to the rules and guidelines set?

At the end of the day, it is very important for educators to lead by example and to restore the glory of the teacher’s union.

I urge the Department of Trade Union Affairs to take swift action without fear or favour. NUTP must once again reign as the champion of the ordinary teacher and should set an example as the largest union in the civil service. - FMT

N Siva Subramaniam is a former NUTP secretary-general.

The views expressed are those of the writer and do not necessarily reflect those of MMKtT.