Teachers demand 10% pay rise

By John Agaba

TEACHERS have asked the Government to include their 10% salary increment, which is part of the 50% pay raise promised in 2012, in the next financial year’s budget.

Meeting at the Teachers’ House in Kampala under their umbrella organization Uganda National Teachers’ Union (UNATU) on Thursday, the teachers pressed for the implementation of their demand before the next academic term, which opens on Monday.

The meeting was attended by about 400 delegates comprising district UNATU chairpersons from across the country, the National Organisation of Trade Unions and representatives from the academic staff associations of Makerere and Kyambogo universities.

“These people (government) are playing on our heads. They think we are fools. They don’t consider us at all. We shall not go back to class until they have given us our money,” James Tweheyo, the unions’ general secretary, said.

“Initially, government said there was no money (to give to the teachers). They asked us to look for the money within the budget. This we did. There was over sh23b. But they don’t want to give us the money,” Tweheyo said.

The government, following endless meetings with UNATU, and a meeting at State House in Entebbe between the teachers’ union and President Yoweri Museveni, agreed to pay teachers a 50% salary increment in a phased manner in 2012.

Ultimately, the teachers were given a 15% salary increment for financial year 2013/2014, and a 25% salary increment for 2014/2015. But, according to the union, the government is backpedaling on its commitment, with the yet to be read 2015/2016 budget apparently not containing the remaining 10%.

In a letter addressed to President Yoweri Museveni on April 23, the teachers vented their dissatisfaction at the “evident lack of respect from government for teachers” for not honoring the commitment.

They even proposed (in the April 23 letter) to withdraw UNATU’s request of sh25b for the teachers’ SACCO funds, another issue that has caused unrest within teachers since the government started releasing the money but, the education ministry selected Micro Finance Support Centre Ltd as the fund manager, ahead of the teachers’ Savings and Credit Cooperative Union Apex.

John Chrysostom Muyingo, the state minister for primary education, confirmed to the New Vision that the 10% salary increment for teachers was not catered for in the 2015/2016 budget, but said it wasn’t enough reason for teachers to withdraw their labour.

“Yesterday (Wednesday), we had a meeting with Tweheyo and teachers’ leaders (at the ministry). We shared with them that the resource envelope cannot allow for us (government) to give to the teachers the 10% salary increment now, but that government was committed to improving teachers’ welfare.

“It is unfortunate if Tweheyo and his group have gone ahead to announce a strike. It is the children who they will be punishing. The government will give them the money. Let them go to class on Monday,” Muyingo said.

But, teachers will not budge. Tweheyo said “enough was enough with the lies”.