Educators Gather At Government House St. Croix In Protest Of Low Wages, Working Conditions

ST. CROIX — Educators here led by St. Croix Federation of Teachers President Rosa Soto-Thomas, descended on Government House in Christiansted on Wednesday for a protest action to raise awareness of a myriad of issues facing teachers, including stagnant wages and the condition of learning facilities.

While the turnout was not large — roughly about 30 persons attended — the action reminded the public of the high level of frustration with the public education system in the Virgin Islands, which has been losing educators for years.

“We are over here having a demonstration to bring awareness to the working conditions that are happening in our schools; the issue of long overdue salary increases, and we’re also echoing the same thing that is happening on a national level,” Mrs. Soto-Thomas said, referring to the National Day of Action Against Gun Violence in Schools, set for April 20 across the U.S.

“There are many issues going on in the Virgin Islands. Our students are getting four hours of education and that’s a major issue for all of us here in the community. We’re hoping for changes, and we’re hoping that our schools are up and going,” Mrs. Soto-Thomas added.

Read more: http://viconsortium.com/featured/educators-gather-at-government-house-st-croix-in-protest-of-low-wages-working-conditions/