teachers, there is a "strong possibility'' the new school year could open with a "work-to-rule'' campaign similar to that held recently by Government blue-collar workers.

Bermuda Union of Teachers organiser Sen. Milton Scott told The Royal Gazette yesterday that teachers have been left out of the education restructuring process for too long, are feeling increasingly vulnerable to school violence, and are stretched beyond their limits due to inadequate resources and training.

"(Work-to-rule) is only an option at this point'' said Sen. Scott -- who is also Opposition Leader in the Senate -- on the second day of the 28th Biennial Conference of the Caribbean Union of Teachers. But he added that increasingly teachers are feeling frustrated by Government's lack of consultation and committment to staff development.

For example, of the $120-million being spent on rebuilding Bermuda's education system, only $8,000 is has been directed to the teachers resource centre, he said.

At the same time Government is resorting to "professional coercion'' by hinting that if teachers don't undertake career development on their own time, they will passed over for future promotions, he said.

Bermuda's problems are shared throughout the Caribbean, Clyde Permell, President of CUT, said in an opening address to the conference on Saturday.

"This is a turbulent time for education. We seem to be caught simultaneously between the critic's eye and the accountant's spreadsheet,'' he told about 90 delegates from 15 affiliated Caribbean unions gathered at Warwick Camp.

Expanding on the theme of "education in transition'', Mr. Permell said issues such as changing technology, Government fiscal policies, privatisation, and the changing nature of employment and its link to schools are all impacting on the "essentials of education''.

"No reform can succeed without the cooperation and active participation of teachers,'' he said.

"Naturally I am extremely concerned because it was reported by the Bermuda Union of Teachers: `What is of greatest concern to us is that we have been left out of the restructuring process. Irrespective of attempts by us to have a greater role in the Ministry of Education restructuring plan, BUT's efforts have been in vain'.'' Teachers facing major changes Unions recognise it is in the interests of the children to cooperate with Government, said Mr. Permell, but the union must also be mindful of its obligation to teachers.

"Above all we must learn to divorce any political interest from the interest of the teachers. Working together (and) with mutual respect can only be to the benefit of out children and the future of the Caribbean.'' In the drive to provide quality education, CUT will continue to fight for better preparation and better quality of recruits, better conditions in schools, and greater professionalism in the reform process, he told the delegates.

The conference, which wraps up on Thursday, will be debating a host of issues including: An application by Jamaica and Guadeloupe for membership to the regional body; The attitude of some Caribbean leaders toward trade union leaders; The harmonisation of the Organisation of Eastern Caribbean States (OECS) education legislation; The free movement of skilled human resources and professionals throughout the region; The situation in volcano-stricken Montserrat and the problems faced by educators there; Education reform in the region; and The location of CUT's secretariat, which is moving from St. Lucia after ten years.