MANILA, Philippines - The team of Davao City Mayor Rodrigo “Rody” Duterte and Sen. Alan Peter Cayetano assured public school teachers of an additional P10,000 in compensation above the Salary Standardization Law should they get elected as the country’s next president and vice president, respectively.
"The country's public school teachers will have a merrier Christmas under a Duterte-Cayetano government," said Cayetano in a statement.
"Tatapusin natin ang malulungkot na pasko ng ating mga guro. Hindi dapat sila tinitipid at kinakaligtaan. Makakaasa ang ating mga guro ng matapang na solusyon at mabilis na aksyon para itaas ang kanilang mga sahod at iba pang benepisyo," Cayetano added.
The senator lambasted the government's proposed salary increase for public school teachers calling it "inconsiderate" and "negligible."
Cayetano said the government's proposed entry-level position of teachers is to grant an additional amount of P2, 205.00 from the present P18, 549.00 or a meager increase of less than 12 percent, spread over a period of four years, making the annual increase of a little more than P500.00, the lowest in recent history.
"Instead of repairing the government's erroneous compensation scheme for teachers, which past and present salary laws classified teachers as among the lowest paid government professionals, its proposed salary increase only reinforced this flawed system," Cayetano said.
"This what Mayor Duterte and I want to end. We will restore the dignity of the teaching profession. No more cheapskate wage increases which do not address burdensome taxes, cost of living and living conditions in general," Cayetano added.
Cayetano said their proposal is part of his Senate Bill 94, that grants public school teachers, locally funded teachers, non-teaching personnel, and non-teaching personnel of the Department of Education additional compensation.