By EARYEL BOWLEG

Tribune Staff Reporter

ebowleg@tribunemedia.net

ABOUT 110 Cuban teachers are set to return to Bahamian classrooms next week under a new hiring framework the government adopted after US warnings over its previous recruitment deals with Havana.

Education Director Dominique McCartney-Russell said yesterday that the teachers, whose contracts remain active, will resume their posts, while others will not return because their contracts have expired. She described their presence as critical given shortages across several subject areas.

“We have been priding ourselves on ensuring that we could provide access to all children, and so it is certainly a sigh of relief for us, even though we are still in need of teachers,” she said. “You know, their support is key to ensuring that we’re able to provide the experiential opportunities for our children.”

Mrs McCartney-Russell said despite earlier uncertainty among the Cuban educators, she expects them to arrive.

“I know that some of them were quite uncertain and they were reaching out, asking questions, and so we expect that they will return,” she said.

The government was pushed to restructure its Cuban recruitment system earlier this year after the US raised concerns that the existing model — which relied on state-run agencies in Havana — amounted to forced labour. Leaked documents indicated the Cuban government kept the majority of the salaries paid by The Bahamas, while workers received only a small fraction. US officials warned Bahamian participation in the scheme could lead to visa sanctions against government officials and their families.

In June, Health and Wellness Minister Dr Michael Darville announced that future Cuban professionals would be hired directly by the government rather than through intermediaries. Recruitment trips to Cuba have since been cancelled, with officials also turning to the United States, Canada and retired Bahamian teachers to help close the gap.

Mrs McCartney-Russell said six additional Cuban teachers were shortlisted at the ministry’s job fair, but a shortfall of 30 to 35 teachers remains. Vacancies include eight language arts teachers, seven technical studies teachers, seven performing arts teachers, six early childhood teachers, three physical education teachers, and six health and family life teachers.

Bahamas Union of Teachers president Belinda Wilson criticised the ministry for cancelling Cuban recruitment trips earlier this year without consulting the union.

Officials previously said there were 130 Cuban teachers were employed in Bahamian schools.