Public sector teachers across Antigua and Barbuda who are eligible for long-awaited final retroactive payments from the 2018 to 2023 collective bargaining contract period now have step-by-step guidance to calculate their outstanding owed amounts, released this week by the Executive of the Antigua and Barbuda Union of Teachers (ABUT).
The guidance is split into two distinct frameworks based on a teacher’s start date within the contract period, to ensure every eligible educator can accurately verify their entitlement. For educators hired between January 1, 2019 and December 31, 2023, the calculation follows a four-step process. First, multiply the teacher’s substantive salary (as recorded on January 1, 2019) by 0.05, then multiply that total by 12 to account for the full 2019 calendar year. Second, calculate the 2020–2023 component by multiplying the teacher’s substantive salary as of January 1, 2020 by 0.092, then multiply that by the total number of months the teacher worked between 2020 and 2023. Third, add the results of the first two calculations to get a subtotal, then sum up the value of all extra monthly salary payments received in 2022, 2024, and 2025. The final retroactive amount owed equals the subtotal minus this sum of previously received extra payments.
To illustrate this first framework, ABUT provided a sample calculation for a hypothetical Teacher A, who was hired in January 2019 and remained employed beyond the end of 2023. With a 2019 starting substantive salary of $2,754, 48 months worked between 2020 and 2023, and extra payments totaling $9,154 across 2022, 2024, and 2025, the final retroactive payout comes out to $4,660.
For educators hired between January 1, 2020 and December 31, 2023, a simplified framework applies. Teachers in this group calculate their base amount by multiplying their January 1, 2020 substantive salary by 0.092, then by the total number of months worked between 2020 and 2023. They then subtract the sum of their extra 2022, 2024, and 2025 salary payments from this base to get their final owed amount, with results rounded to the nearest whole dollar. ABUT’s sample for this group, Teacher B, also hired with a $2,754 salary and 48 months of work, ends up with a final retroactive payment of $3,008 after rounding.
ABUT’s leadership emphasizes that this public guidance is designed to promote full transparency around the retroactive payment process, allowing every eligible teacher to independently confirm their expected payout rather than relying solely on government calculations. The union has advised both members and non-members who identify any discrepancies between their own calculation and the payment issued by the government to report inconsistencies to either the Accounts Department at the Ministry of Education or the Treasury Department for review.
In closing the announcement, ABUT President Casroy Charles reaffirmed the union executive’s ongoing commitment to keeping all teaching staff updated on any new developments related to the retroactive payment process. The organization says it will continue working to ensure every educator receives the full and fair compensation they are entitled to under the 2018–2023 collective agreement.