Pangilinan supports public school teachers' call for P10,000 pay hike

MANILA - Senator Francis "Kiko" Pangilinan supports the call of public-school teachers for a P10,000 pay increase in their monthly compensation.

On Friday, the eve of World Teacher's Day, thousands of teachers and their supporters held a unity walk to Mendiola to demand a P30,000 entry-level salary for public school teachers.

Pangilinan said the P20,000 or so monthly compensation of entry-level teachers are not enough.

"Sa mga kamay nila natin ipinagkatiwala ang kinabukasan ng kabataang Pilipino. Dapat kilalanin ang kanilang kontribusyon sa lipunan at bigyan sila ng sapat na sahod at insentibo (We entrust to them the future of the Filipino youth. They should be recognized for their contribution to society and should be given adequate compensation and incentives)," Pangilinan said in a statement released Saturday, World Teacher's Day.

"Kung may pera para sa mga pulis at militar, dapat may pera para sa mga titser. Kung may pera para sa junket ng mga 'rabid' fans ng Pangulo, dapat may pera para sa mga titser (If there is money for the police and the military, there should be money for teachers. If there is money for 'rabid' fans of the President, there should be money for teachers)," he added.

An entry-level Teacher 1 receives a gross basic monthly salary of P20,179, which is 48%

less is than the salary of an entry-level Police Officer 1, who gets P29,668.

At the start of the 18th Congress, Pangilinan filed Senate Bill 37 which proposes an additional compensation of P10,000 per month for public school teachers, locally-funded teachers, Philippine Science High School System teaching and non-teaching personnel, and non-teaching personnel of the Department of Education.

Senate Bill 37 or the Basic Education Teachers Pay Increase Act of 2019 proposes that the P10,000 additional bonus will be paid in three tranches: P4,000 per month for the first year, an additional of P3,000 for the second year, and another P3,000 per month for the third year.

The bill also proposes further support in the form of allowances and renumeration funded from local school board funds, an additional medical allowance of P1,000 per year, and an annual Magna Carta Bonus which, according to the bill, is yet to be realized in a given budget year.

Similar bills have been filed by other senators.

DepEd itself said that the total debt of our teachers from public and private lenders has reached $6.38 billion or P319 billion.

"Hirap ang mga titser natin. Sa panukalang batas na ito, gusto nating mahikayat ang mas maraming tao na gawing karera ang pagtuturo (Our teachers are in dire straits. Hopefully, this will also encourage more people to pursue teaching as a career)," Pangilinan said.

SB 37 is part of Pangilinan's ten priority bills for the 18th Congress. He also filed Senate Bill 260 which aims to increase the salary of entry-level government nurses to P30,000.