An arbitration hearing on a long-running dispute over teachers’ pay began yesterday — with a decision expected from the tribunal panel early next week.

The closed hearing at the Department of Labour heard evidence from Bermuda Union of Teachers (BUT) and Ministry of Education officials on failed negotiations on a pay rise for public school teachers.

Teachers claim the Ministry reneged on a promise to give them a 4.5 percent rise for two years. Talks broke down when the union recently rejected a final offer from Government for 4.5 percent for the first year and 4 percent for the second.

The ongoing wrangle means teachers have not had a pay rise since 2005.

Lawyer Larry Scott is chairing the arbitration hearing, with Gary Phillips and Armell Thomas as arbitrators. Mr. Scott said last night he hoped the hearing would conclude this week and that if it did he expected to hand his final report to Education Minister Randy Horton early next week. He described the decision of the arbitration panel as final and binding.

Mike Charles, general secretary of the BUT, told The Royal Gazette: “We have started today and we are hoping for a speedy resolution. As far as we are concerned, they reneged.”

He said the union would make a proposal to the panel for a rise deemed acceptable by teachers but could not say what that would be while arbitration was ongoing.

Meanwhile, Mr. Horton held talks on Monday with representatives from the BUT, the Association of School Principals and Bermuda Public Services over changes planned to the public school system.

The three unions met under the auspices of the Trade Unions Congress (TUC) last week to discuss members’ concerns that they were being left out of plans for educational reform.

The reform, starting in September, follows recommendations from a team of education experts who described the Island’s public schools as “on the brink of meltdown” earlier this year. An interim executive board has been set up to implement the changes.

Mr. Charles, who is also general secretary of the TUC, said members of all three unions “had questions as to what’s going on, simply because everything seems to be done in secrecy”.

He added: “People were worried about their jobs.

“Some of it was cleared up in meetings that were held with the Minister yesterday. There are still questions that need to be answered but he did promise the dialogue will get better and we will hold him to that.

“That’s the only thing that I think we got out of the meeting yesterday.

“At least there was some dialogue, which there wasn’t before.”

The Ministry had no comment on the arbitration or the Minister’s meetings yesterday.