A secondary school teacher, who was fired in November 2021 under the then government’s COVID-19 vaccine mandate, is returning to the classroom, less than a week after the Godwin Friday administration took up office here following the November 27 general election.
Ann-Marie Ballantyne, a French and Spanish teacher, told the Caribbean Media Corporation (CMC) that she received a call from the Ministry of Education last Thursday to report for duties at the St. Vincent Grammar School (SVGS), where she had been teaching before the mandate came into effect.
She said that she had first acted based on information provided by Prime Minister Friday on December 1, as he arrived at the Administrative Complex in Kingstown for his first day at work after being sworn into office November 28.
‘. I heard him say what he said. I can’t remember his words verbatim now. I decided I will go and register my interest at my former workplace. . I went (last) Tuesday. I told them that I was still interested. My interest in my job is unchanged,’ Ballantyne told CMC.
‘I spoke with the deputy principal, because the principal is out on leave, so I told her of my interest, and I asked her to please convey that information to the necessary authorities.’
Ballantyne said she received a call last Thursday from a senior education officer, informing her to report to work at SVGS.
Hundreds of public sector workers lost their jobs for failing to take a COVID-19 vaccine by November 2021, as the then Ralph Gonsalves administration had mandated.
The Public Service Union, St. Vincent and the Grenadines Teachers Union and the Police Welfare Association challenged the government’s action and the High Court ruled in March 2023 that the government’s actions were illegal and unconstitutional and that the workers never ceased to be employees of the state.
However, in February 2025, the Court of Appeal overturned that ruling in a 2-1 decision and has since given permission for the matter to be heard by the London-based Privy Council, the island’s highest court.
The New Democratic Party (NDP) had long committed to reinstating the workers with their benefits intact and in the lead lead-up to the general election, which the NDP won by taking 14 of the 15 parliamentary seats, Friday had said that an NDP government would reinstate the workers within 60 days of coming to office.
Ballantyne said she asked the education officer about a letter of reinstatement because that had always been one of her issues.
‘He told me the letter will follow, but for now, I must report to Grammar School, ‘she said.
Last Monday, Prime Minister Friday told CMC in response to a question regarding the implementation of the public servants that ‘we have made a commitment, and we intend to honour that commitment.
‘I know some persons may come to work and so forth today (December 1), as we had said, but that is a process of essentially saying, ‘Listen, I’m ready to come back to where I have been.’
‘The process of taking the proper information and making sure that people are properly positioned and that they can be assured that they will be rehired and put in the positions that they can function effectively, but it starts the process today,’ he said, acknowledging that it would take some time to get everything in place, noting that some things have changed since the workers were dismissed.
‘Some positions may not be available. Some positions may have changed. Persons may be there, but we will honour the spirit and the commitment that we’ve made to the public servants who were fired under the vaccine mandate. We intend to do so starting now,’ he said.
Ballantyne’s husband, Shefflorn Ballantyne, a Community College lecturer who also lost his job under the mandate, also reminded his former workplace last week of his interest in returning to work, but is yet to receive a call.