MOE lets 200 contracted workers go

MOE lets 200 contracted workers go
Minister of Education Jeffrey Lloyd. (FILE PHOTO)

Two-hundred of the more than 600 contracted workers within the Ministry of Education have been disengaged.

Education Minister Jeff Lloyd made the announcement in Parliament Monday afternoon.

The issue surrounding the contracted workers became a highly controversial topic during last year’s budget debate, when Lloyd revealed that the workers were engaged with no paperwork and that the proper procedure was not followed.

Lloyd claimed the employees were hired months before the election and the contracts should have ended on June 30, 2017.

“If we had honored those contracts, hundreds would have been out of a job – no longer employed – and the talk shows and everywhere else would have been saying, ‘it’s the people’s time’ and ‘this is what they did’,” Lloyd said.

Although many of the contracts were only for four months, and many areas did not need the manpower, Lloyd said he required the contracted workers to complete several training courses.

They also had to show up on time for work and conduct themselves in the proper manner, he said.

“We told them to be on time, be mannerly follow instructions and so on. Only 400 of them took advantage of it and we have been unable to find the 200 ever since,” he said.

Lloyd said the 400 hundred workers remain employed at various sections within the ministry, while payment has been discontinued for the remaining 200.

 

About Genea Noel

Genea Noel is the news director and weeknight TV news anchor at Eyewitness News. She began working at Eyewitness News in 2018 as the newsroom editor and was subsequently promoted during her tenure. As a household name who graces the screens of thousands of Bahamian homes each night, Genea has racked up an impressive five Bahamas Press Club awards, including “The Cyril Stevenson Award for Outstanding Political Journalism” (2020), “Best Studio Live Producer” (2020) and “Best Newscast” (2018).