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Baguio teachers call for better pay

BAGUIO CITY (Oct. 5) — Baguio teachers expressed their sentiments through a unified manifesto at a forum sponsored by St. Louis University’s Institute of Philosophy & Religion and the College of Education on exemplifying the abandonment of the educators’ situation last October 5, the World Teachers’ Day.

“There is a substantial number of teachers who continue to live under poverty and all too often are neglected by government policies and programs,” stated a manifesto released by the Alliance of Concerned Teachers (ACT).

Guest Speaker Ronald Quetua, ACT National Coordinator, asserts that teachers nationwide, both in the public and private institutions, experience the prolonged agony of insufficient benefits and remuneration in exchange for all the adversity of such profession. Although in some educational institutions, teachers have been compensated with allowances that cover food and clothing, the salary issue still perpetually worsens. Moreover, the issue of the long overdue Cost of Living Allowance (COLA) has been treated as if a nuisance since 1989.

The manifesto also strongly handles the issue on how the government allocates budget for education.

“Salary scales for teachers should be reviewed periodically,” it states. Teachers proposed for a regular evaluation of when to give them the raise in their COLA, or a holistic increase in wage or salary levels. Incompetence and irresponsibility of such provision impel the teachers to seek extra income, i.e. selling small things just to augment their insufficient salaries.

Teachers suggest that the Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) must give them a tax-free salary, or at least essentially lessen their taxes. They also appeal for an intensified call for higher education budget. Good salaries may be reflective of a qualitative performance from the students. The usual public school system has a teacher- student ratio of one is to 70. Deficit in the number of teachers sacrifices the quality of a better supervision of the students’ performance, ACT observes.

Quetua also says that the problem is really rooted on the improper budget allocation. Article 14, Section 1 of the Philippine Constitution actually states that education is its priority that directly contrasts the present situation. In the 2005 National Budget, only 14.9 % is allocated to Education as compared with almost 70% for foreign debt servicing.

ACT assures that they will lobby all their sentiments immediately in Congress with the help of progressive party lists such as Anakpawis, Bayan Muna and Gabriela Women’s Party, with the cooperation of all teachers nationwide, Quetua says, “Cogito Ergo Servial. Tayo ay nag-iisip para magsilbi.” (We think to serve). # Pink-Jean Fangon Melegrito for NORDIS

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