Govt. will have to draw up a new salary structure for teachers: Ed. Ministry
View(s):The Government will have to work out a revised salary structure for teachers to overcome the current crisis on salaries for them, a senior Education Ministry official said.
A recent report shows that if the structure recommended by one of the committees is implemented it would cost the Government as much as Rs. 67.8 billion annually, causing issues with salary structures of other public sectors, he said.
According to this report some of the grades will be getting a salary revision amounting to 80 per cent while some others will get 64 per cent, while A/L qualified teachers will be getting a 24 per cent increase, he added.
However, another committee has proposed a revision that would cost the Government only Rs eight billion annually.
Accordingly, the Ministry along with relevant officials will have to prepare another structure to resolve the existing issue.
Meanwhile Education Ministry secretary Kapila Perera said the services of teachers were required in schools to carry out several activities including handing over assignments to be completed by students.
According to a recent programme drawn out the Education Ministry has sent out assignments to schools to be handed over to children through their parents. However, though the assignments have been sent, they cannot be handed over to the parents as the principal offices are closed and teachers are not present to handle the programme, Prof. Perera said.
Under the programme, the teachers were expected to hand over the assignments to the parents and then collect them for marking. Even though teachers claim they have no work to carry out in schools, in fact there is work to be carried out, before schools resume again, Prof. Perera added.
He also said some of the teachers who complain about lack of infrastructure facilities to carry out online educational programmes could also use facilities in schools and continue online education.