their differences.

This week, Education Permanent Secretary Marion Robinson rescheduled a meeting between Bermuda Union of Teachers and education officials until December 12 and 13.

The meeting was delayed to allow education officials time to seek legal advise from the Attorney General's Chamber after the teacher's union arrived at the meeting with lawyer Alan Dunch.

The meeting was to address the union's filed grievance against the Ministry's method of hiring teachers for new posts in the restructured school system.

The Ministry, which earlier this year declared all teaching posts in high schools vacant to create new posts for the senior secondary and middle schools, introduced a competency test after 17 people applied for three deputy principal posts at Cedarbridge Academy.

One part of the test dealt with occupational personality, while the other dealt with aptitude.

The Ministry explained that the test -- provided by the Personnel Services Department -- was the only way it could short-list the applicants and ensure that the best people for the jobs were hired.

Applicants were also to be selected based on their curriculum vitae, a letter explaining why they believed they were best for the posts, and interviews.

But at least one teacher -- Northlands deputy principal Randolph Benjamin -- objected to the test.

And the BUT filed a grievance on September 27 claiming the Department made an error in establishing the posts by breaching the terms of agreement under which teachers were employed.

And in making the error, the union argued, the Department jeopardised the livelihood of Mr. Benjamin and other teachers.