Teachers Syndicate threaten to boycott correction of official exams

         
The General Assembly of Teachers in Lebanon held a meeting on Monday during which they called for a vote over the Teachers Syndicate's decision to boycott the correction of official exams if the salary scale is not referred to Parliament by June 22.       

The teacher's syndicate issued a statement in which it condemned what it described as "stalling" on behalf of the Ministry of Finance in handling the pay scale dossier.
         
The syndicate also held the Ministry of Finance responsible for the delay in referring the pay scale to parliament due to some mistakes in the salary grid.        

The Union Coordinating Committee alongside the private and public schools association had launched an open ended strike on February 19th, 2013 after making repeated called on Mikati to validate the new salary scale and consequently refer it to Parliament for ratification.          

Cabinet referred the wage scale on Thursday 21st of March, 2013.         

The government endorsed a minimum wage hike last December, which became retroactively operative in February 2012, for both private and public sector employees.            

The minimum monthly wage was fixed at $450, effectively rising by $116 (LL175,000) for those on the minimum pay.          

Upon the recommendation of the Central Bank and Economic Committees, the Prime Minister has suggested that the payment of the wage hike be made in installments to keep inflation under control and avoid a widening budget deficit.          

The union leader Hanna Gharib, however insists that no compromise on their demands will be accepted, stating that the salary hike should be paid in one go using alternative resources.