Papua New Guinea: New payroll leaves teachers out of pocket
EI affiliate the Papua New Guinea Teachers Association (PNGTA) reports that 544 teachers in the Southern region have not been paid properly as the result of a new Payroll System.
According to payroll documents obtained by the association, most of the teachers walked home to their families with as little as 6 US dollars to show for their two weeks labour for the pay period ending March 17. The Association also says a teacher from the Northern Province received 20 cents pay due to the unauthorized deductions by the new payroll system. The new Payroll System was an initiative under the government public service payroll reform. The PNGTA says complaints from the past on the same matter were not explained or corrected. Meanwhile, a 4 percent pay increment for teachers remains outstanding from 2003. The union says it has asked the industrial registrar to see if there was breach of the Teaching Service Salary Fixation Agreement 2004-2006.
