Gov't needs to change approach to teachers' welfare

Jun 10, 2015

Teachers in Uganda have been agitating for a pay rise for the last 10 years.



By Patrick Igulot

Teachers in Uganda have been agitating for a pay rise for the last 10 years. After a series of promises and strikes, teachers are yet to realise their demands.

In this paper, I trace the promises, compare salaries and inflation, and suggest a new approach to this problem.

In 2009, after several years of agitation, teachers tabled a demand for 50% pre-tax increment of their salary. They wanted their salary to be increased from 273,000 to 546,000, for the lowest paid teacher. In this year, inflation was 14.2%.

 In 2010, when inflation was 9.4%, the government promised teachers 30% pay rise to be effected in 2011.  In this year, prices were fair as shown by a kilo of sugar which was 2,200 by December. The government failed to honour this pledge. 

In 2011 following an impending strike by teachers, the teachers raised their stake and demanded 100% pay rise, about 1 million. After negotiations, the government promised 50% increment to be implemented in three phases, 15% in 2012, 20% in 2013 and 15% in 2014.

In 2012, the government honoured the 15% increment but teachers criticized it, arguing that inflation was 30% and an increment of 30,000 was “inhuman and undermined teachers’ dignity”. This increased pay for the lowest teacher from 267,300 to a net of 301,000.

Because of 26% inflation, a kilo of sugar which cost 2,500 was more than 3,000. In other words, if a teacher was able to buy 12 kilos of sugar with 30,000 in 2010, they could only buy 10 kilos in 2012; Inflation had reduced the worth of their income and neutralized the increment.

In July 2013, following the failure to pay the promised 20%, teachers resolved to strike but the government convinced teachers that it was going to get the money within a month; teachers called off the strike but the increment was not paid.  

In 2014 and 2015, no increments were made.  Primary school teachers, who were supposed to be earning at least 546,000, remained earning peanuts; after 10 years, the government has only increased teachers’ salary by 30,000.

Even if teachers had received all promised pay; five years down the road, and despite inflation stabilizing at about 8% in 2013 and 2014, this would still not have improved the welfare of teachers. This is because, prices in Uganda hardly reduce.

Teachers have called off their strike on the basis of yet another promise of 15% increment in 2016. By the end of next year, just as night follows day, teachers will be striking over unfulfilled promises.

To sustainably improve the welfare of teachers and other civil servants, and indeed all citizens, the government needs to change direction, from the current consumer based economy to a productive one.

Between 2004 and 2011, Uganda imported more than she is exported, which was partly due to low productivity.  This needs to change.

Uganda needs to adapt a structured way of increasing productivity. By expanding the country’s wealth, we would get enough money to improve the welfare of civil servants and all citizens.

Besides increasing national productivity, especially in agriculture, the government needs to adapt efficient measures to prevent wastage of public resources.

Improving the welfare of civil servants also needs attending to their broader needs. Civil servants need free or affordable housing, transport, health care, and education. Without subsidies in these areas, paying teachers 500,000 would still make no difference in their welfare.

Thirdly, it should be a government policy to automatically increase salaries of civil servants every 2 years to cope with inflation.

By restructuring the economy to become more productive, adapting administrative efficiency, providing civil servants with subsidized goods and services, and increasing their pay regularly, the government would have approached the issue of civil servants’ welfare strategically.


The writer is a PhD candidate in London, UK
Email: igulotpat@yahoo.com 
 

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