ACT Teachers Party-list Rep. France Castro called on the Department of Budget and Management and the Department of Education to fast-track the release of the salary differential of public school teachers for 2022.

“The concerned government agencies should have done the process immediately after the release of the 2022 budget because this is an anticipated salary differential and the third tranche of the salary standardization. This is not new to them since the enactment of Salary Standardization Law 5, in every tranche they have the mandate to adjust the salary,” Castro said.

She said public school teachers need their adjusted salaries to make both ends meet.

“Itong DBM at DepEd ay laging magkasabwat sa delay na pag-release ng benepisyo tulad ng Performance Based Bonus, ngayon naman pati itong salary differential ng mga guro. Ano ba ang mas inaatupag ng DepEd, ‘yung 15/30 salary scheme, pag-disregard sa overtime pay, kulang na Service Recognition Incentive at iba pang mga pahirap na polisiya tulad ng bagong Result-based Performance Management System,” Castro added.

“We demand for the immediate release of the salary differential alongside our call for substantial salary increase, especially in this time of pandemic where everyone is affected by the inflation, sky-rocketing prices of goods, massive unemployment, and the government’s disastrous pandemic response,” she said.