Otherwise, what is the rationale of opening another front in the multifaceted battle with trade unions by leaving out Maths teachers with a diploma in the scarce skills allowance dispensation? Surely, the government knew that the unions and the cadre concerned were never going to take this matter lying down. But instead of avoiding the avoidable, the government chose the high road to confrontation. No union worth its name can take such a blatant and ill-advised decision without a fight. Botswana unions have become increasingly assertive in recent times and for the government to invite them to a duel in this fashion may as well be read as a sign of insensitivity and irresponsibility from the authorities. The secretary general of Botswana Sectors of Educators Trade Union (BOSETU), Tobokani Rari hit the nail on the head when he responded to the decision to lock out diploma holding teachers from the allowance by saying that government never gives them what they deserve in full. More importantly, he announced that the union will fight for diploma holding teachers to be paid the scarce skills allowance too. If it were possible, it would have been good for teachers with degrees to boycott the allowance until their colleagues with diplomas are included in the dispensation. But these are hard times and who wants to forego money from a government that is increasingly becoming stingy in paying salaries and benefits? The government's discrimination of diploma holders could have been understandable - but not excusable - if there is an oversupply of Maths teachers with diplomas, but from what we hear, this is not the case. So is the government paying for the university degree or a scarce skill? Does it mean that diploma holding teachers have no skill, scarce or abundant? The answer is that it might be a question of knowledge or the depth of knowledge, but the skills of a Maths teacher with a diploma cannot be doubted. Maths is an exact science and one plus one will always be equals to two, whether you are a professor of nuclear physics or a nursery school child. This is why the government's decision is an affront to middle level training and colleges. We agree that refusing to pay the scarce skills allowance to Maths teachers with a diploma is discriminatory and utterly misguided. The allowance is calculated according to basic salary so already the diploma holding teachers will definitely get a lesser figure. This is in line with the normal practice where those with lesser qualifications are included in a deal like this though their pay is lower than those with higher qualifications. Locking out those with lower qualifications is always a recipe for labour unrest and that is what the current decision by the government will evoke.
Today's thought
