Public school teachers experienced driest Christmas celebration in years as the Aquino government denied them of year-end incentives, the first time in over a decade. The Teachers’ Dignity Coalition (TDC) said many teachers were really dismayed because they were still hoping that the government would grant them some sort of year-end bonus which they traditionally receive before Christmas Day.
“The last time that teachers and government employees did not receive a year-end bonus was in December 2004. However, former President Gloria Macapagal Arroyo granted two incentives amounting to P4,000 during the first half of the year 2005,” said Benjo Basas, TDC Chairperson. Basas is referring to the P3,000 Productivity Enhancement Pay in February and the P1,000 Educational Assistance in June of that year.
Basas also recalls that since year 2002 up to its last year-end in December 2009, the Arroyo administration has been consistently granting year-end incentives in varying amounts and names. The biggest was the performance bonus worth P10,000 starting 2007 up to 2009, when it was renamd Productivity Enhancement Incentive or PEI.
“That P10,000 bonus was retained by Aquino administration in the two succeeding years, but in year 2012, the DBM and Malacanang cut the PEI by half and gave only P5,000 year-end incentive for teachers and government employees.” Basas added.
The group also said that government employees and teachers would have been appreciative if Malacanang grant them just and competitive salaries.
“More than a one-time incentive, we need a dignified compensation that would be commensurate to our role as public educators. Thus, for the longest time we were pushing for a P10,000 across-the-board increase for salaries of teachers,” Basas quips. “But what the government prepared as holiday present for us is the insulting salary package under salary standardization law (SSL) 2015 which is about to grant a P528.00 monthly increase in our salaries starting January 2016,” he continued.
Teachers have been telling Basas they are very dismayed because they waited for more than five years before the announcement of a salary increase from the Aquino administration. Yet, it would only provide for a very meager increase and worse, zero year-end incentives.
“This is how this administration treats us teachers. This is their holiday present. We hope that in 2016, things will become better and brighter for teachers and state workers under a new government.” Basas ended.
