Catholic Teachers’ Strike in Liberia’s Monrovia Archdiocese “gross unfairness”: Official

For one, the members of ACTS INC. demand the payment “in full” of all their respective salary arrears for the months of May, June and July. 

Two, CES employees ask their employer to pay the National Social Security Premium for each of the ACTS INC members and issue them a Social Security Valid Identification Card.

Their third demand is that their employer reduces the probation period from three years to three months constitute the third demand by ACTS INC members to the leadership of CES.

They further ask their employer to include them in the formation of the new personnel policy manual.

The employees who made real their ultimatum for the strike call on their employer to issue them with pays lips that indicate the deductions made in their gross salary and their take-home-salary that remains after the various subtraction. 

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In the October 19 interview with ACI Africa, Fr. Sumo-Varfee said that while the first demand by ACTS INC members is appropriate, it is “not correct to the full extent in demanding for full salary.”

“The Ministry of Labor of the Republic of Liberia came up with a COVID-19 regulation that employers pay 50 percent of the salary for the months of May, June and July 2020 when most public and private institutions were shut down,” he explained.

Making reference to the August 3 message addressed to all the personnel of the learning institutions under the Archdiocese of Monrovia, Fr. Sumo-Varfee said that “CES released a memorandum to every personnel ... making a commitment to” make the payments.

The salaries for the months of May, August and September were paid by the end of September, the Cleric told ACI Africa, adding that “the 50 percent for June, as well as July, are yet to be paid.”

“Serious efforts are being made to pay these; so, it is actually fair to describe these as the only genuine arrears yet in 2020 that need to be settled,” Fr. Sumo-Varfee told ACI Africa. 

Regarding the demand for Social Security (SS) ID cards, the Liberian Priest said that only the SS department in Liberia “is allowed to produce SS cards and assign SS numbers.”

In the interview with ACI Africa, the Priest also refuted the claims that CES puts her employees on three years of probation saying, “This is definitely not what we do or have done. We strictly stick to the legal rules and regulations when it comes to any form of employment.”

Referencing the employees demand to be included in the formation of policies, the Cleric said, “We as the employer cannot accept that our policies are developed by employees; this is clearly the duty of employers and we cannot accept that this duty be taken away from us.”

Fr. Samo-Varfee added that employees obtain pay slips that include their deductions, net salaries and gross salaries “from any of our schools without the involvement of the CES.” 

CES will “continue dialogue and negotiations for a favorable solution” for both parties, the Education Secretary said.

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Magdalene Kahiu is a Kenyan journalist with passion in Church communication. She holds a Degree in Social Communications from the Catholic University of Eastern Africa (CUEA). Currently, she works as a journalist for ACI Africa.