The Tribune

By RASHAD ROLLE

EDUCATION Director Lionel Sands said teachers at Stephen Dillet and Uriah McPhee primary schools “will face consequences” for not teaching yesterday after Ministry officials cleared the schools for reopening.

Citing “structural problems” with the school, teachers at Stephen Dillet did not teach while teachers at Uriah McPhee sat outside because they said the building was full of “fumes”.

The Tribune understands that students at Uriah McPhee did not show up.

Classes at the two window-less institutions have not resumed since last week Wednesday when they were closed so that contractors could address their faulty air conditioning systems and the presence of mould in one of the buildings. It is unclear when classes will resume as normal.

Nonetheless, Mr Sands said yesterday: “We got all clearance for teachers and students from the Environmental Health Department. They should’ve been in place today. Teachers who refused to teach will suffer any consequences for withholding their services.”

In response, BUT president Belinda Wilson said: “Tell Mr Sands and the Minister we are not afraid of their threats. They will do what they have to do and we will do what we have to do.

“They had a report,” she said, “about the status of the schools, but their reports were not as conclusive and extensive as ours. At both schools the teachers reported for duty today. School was dismissed at 12 noon at Stephen Dillet because the air conditioning was not working properly, plus there was fiber glass, and no children showed up at Uriah – can’t teach if ain no children show up. If they try to give the teachers any negative consequences, well, the union has other ways and means to deal with situations like that.”

More than 25 teachers were sitting outside Uriah McPhee when The Tribune arrived at the school.

Reporters were not allowed through the gate, but angry teachers still shouted their complaints.

Pointing to a gas mask teachers used when entering the building, one teacher said: “Fumes, fumes and more fumes!” She added that fumes left over from work done in the building remained inside, preventing them from working.

“How the fumes could leave a building without windows?” one person asked while another teacher said: “It’s raining. Why are we out here? Workers are still here busy working in the building.”

According to another teacher: “No one is even telling us what’s going on. We’ve received no official word.”

Wishing to remain anonymous, a janitor said: “I been in there to use the phone and child I had to run out. This ain makin’ no sense. It’s ‘fumy’ and an odour or something in the air. You can’t sit in there choking.”