THE ALLIANCE of Concerned Teachers submitted a petition signed by more than 200 organizations of teaching and non-teaching personnel to President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. that seeks salary upgrades and education reforms.

“We totally agree with the recent Pulse Asia survey commissioned by Senator Sherwin Gatchalian that half of Filipinos believe public school teachers are not paid enough for the job they do. This is also the reason why many teachers take on odd jobs just to make ends meet. Some teachers go into online selling while others work part time as Grab, Lalamove or Angkas drivers. Others still work in call centers at night to augment the meager salaries they receive as teachers,” Vladimer Quetua, the group’s chairperson, said.

“We are submitting to the president contains ten-point measures to ensure education recovery as well salaries and welfare upgrade for teachers and education workers,” he added.

The petition are as follows:

1. Double the education budget to fulfill the United Nation’s standard of allocating education budget equivalent to six per cent of the country’s gross domestic product;

2. Fulfill the requirements for the safe conduct of face-to-face classes in 100 percent of schools nationwide. Hire sufficient number of teachers to effectively cut down class size. Build the necessary facilities and install sufficient health measures;

3. Conduct student assessments nationwide to determine the nature and extent of the learning crisis, as well as design and implement an evidence-based education recovery program;

4. Provide sufficient and quality teaching and learning resources such as gadgets, textbooks, modules, internet allowance, etc.

5. Overhaul the K to 12 program. Reinstate Philippine History in the high school curriculum, with stress on factual Martial Law education to counter historical distortion. Restore Filipino and Philippine Literature in the tertiary curriculum ;

6. Upgrade the salary level of teachers and education support personnel: Salary Grade 15 for Teacher I; Salary Grade 16 for Instructor I; and P16,000 monthly salary for Salary Grade I employees;

7. Hire sufficient number of education support personnel to unload teachers of burdensome administrative duties and enable them to focus on instruction;

8. Improve the benefits of education workers: compensate the 77 excess workdays of public school teachers in school year 2020-2021; grant 15 days sick leave for public school teachers; grant P3,000 inflation adjustment allowance for all government employees; lower the optional retirement age of government workers to 56 year old; expand and improve benefits for GSIS and SSS members;

9. Enact the Magna Carta for Private School Teachers.

10. Ensure the enjoyment of academic freedom of all teachers and institutions, and full union rights of education workers.

“We hope that the president as well as the VP as the concurrent education secretary would study and implement these measures to address the many issues confronting the education sector and we are open to discuss these with them,” Quetua said.