Private School Teachers Face Sharp Decline in Salaries

APP

Multan: As the world commemorates World Teachers’ Day with enthusiasm, private school teachers in Multan continue to grapple with sharply declining salaries and overwhelming workloads. 

Despite their significant contributions to the education sector, these educators remain underpaid and overburdened, facing increasingly challenging working conditions.

According to several private school faculty members interviewed on Saturday, most teachers, particularly women holding qualifications from graduate to master’s levels, earn as little as Rs. 15,000 to Rs. 20,000 per month. 

This financial strain is compounded by additional responsibilities such as organizing extracurricular activities, managing school events on national days, and ensuring school discipline.

Fardeen, an 8th-grade teacher at a local private school, shared her concerns: “Despite over a decade of service, I still only receive Rs. 20,000 a month. Teachers are paid far less than in other professions, and the gap is only widening.”

Humaira, another private school teacher, expressed frustration over the lack of respect and support from school management.

 “In addition to low pay, private school teachers often face humiliation from principals. We are also forced to teach in unhealthy conditions, especially during power outages in the summer, with no backup facilities provided,” she said.

Beyond the low salaries and difficult working environments, private school teachers also face job insecurity. 

Ghazala and Farzana, two sisters who taught at a local school, were expelled in a humiliating manner on September 20th for minor mistakes in students’ classwork. “We were not even paid for the days we worked diligently,” they lamented.

A teacher, speaking anonymously due to fear of losing her job, highlighted the lack of paid leave in the private education sector. “In other professions, employees are entitled to paid leaves, but private school teachers are not afforded this basic right.”

Faiz Abbas, CEO of Education, acknowledged the severity of the situation and expressed regret over the absence of a regulatory policy to address the low salaries of private school teachers. 

“It is unfortunate that teachers in private schools have no service structure. This lack of regulation allows private educational institutions to offer alarmingly low salary packages,” he explained.

As private school teachers continue to endure these challenges, the celebration of World Teachers’ Day serves as a stark reminder of the pressing need for reforms in the education sector to protect and uplift those who are shaping the nation’s future.