Gov. Charles Turnbull said Friday afternoon he hoped teachers and students would all be back in school Monday after an eight-day strike.
When asked during one of the his infrequent press conferences what he would do if the teachers didn't return, the governor said he would "cross that bridge" when he got to it. Turnbull said that after several lengthy meetings with the Legislature that culminated with a bill generating $11 million for teachers, he hoped they understood the government's financial plight.
Turnbull repeated what he told a huge group of striking teachers and their supporters earlier Friday on the steps of Government House on St. Thomas.
"We can’t see any other money at this time," he said, adding that he ordered his negotiating team to take all "barriers" off the negotiating table, including the $100 million-plus owed teachers in retroactive wages.
"If there's nothing, and that is actually true, a longer strike will not bring something," he said. "I expect teachers to think it out and come to the conclusion this is the best offer we can get at this time."
Of the $11 million found to pay teachers, $1 million is slated to come from the V.I. Water and Power Authority. That payment proposal got mixed reviews at a WAPA board of directors meeting Thursday.
Turnbull said he plans to meet with some of the board members, three of whom sit in his Cabinet, to discuss the payment. WAPA managers indicated Thursday that the $1 million payment to the government’s general fund could be made up through a 1 percent rate hike.
"I am of the opinion that the WAPA board isn’t against helping," Turnbull said.
As for the possibility of Southern Energy, or any other entity, reviving the process to purchase WAPA, Turnbull was vague. As part of a larger deal, Southern Energy had offered the government $105 million up front for WAPA. The proceeds, Turnbull said Friday, would have been enough to pay teachers, police and other government employees who are owed raises.
"I can’t say now whether the WAPA initiative is half-dead or dead or whatever," he said.
The governor characterized the territory’s $1 billion-plus debt as a "really tight balancing act" and dismissed the notion of a federal bailout or the likelihood he would purge the government of thousands of workers in order to make ends meet.
"The 2,000 to 3,000 persons who would be sent home would still be in the community," he said, adding that would create "chaos."
Meanwhile, the St. Croix chapter of the American Federation of Teachers has scheduled a general membership meeting on Sunday to discuss the government's offer.
