Economic managers trying to source funds for teachers salary hike

June 11, 2019

Malacanang on Tuesday said the Duterte administration’s economic managers are '' doing something about'' increasing the salary of public school teachers.

“What I know is they are preparing… Our economic managers are doing something about it,” Presidential Spokesperson Salvador Panelo said in a press briefing.

Panelo said the economic managers have to source the funds.

“As the budget head (Janet Abuel) was saying last night, increase of 10,000 per every teacher, you need about P115 billion,” he said.

According to Panelo, President Rodrigo Duterte was just listening but he is “definitely all for it”.

“The only problem is we are still looking where to get the fund,” he said.

During the Cabinet meeting last Monday, Education Secretary Leonor Briones told Duterte teachers are being taken cared of as they receive several benefits and bonuses on top of a P20, 574 minimum salary.

According to the data of Department of Education, teachers’ monthly salary has increased by more than 100 percent since 2000.

Data showed the basic monthly salary of Teacher I constituted a 119.25 percent increase which means that following the final tranche of the Salary Standardization Law in 2019, a Teacher I now gets P20,754 compared to P9,466 in 2000.

DepEd said Teacher II receives P22,938 monthly compensation; Teacher III P25,232; Master Teacher I P40,637; Master Teacher II P45,269; Master Teacher III P51,155; and Master Teacher IV P57,805.

“If benefits are computed and incorporated, a Teacher I today receives P30,873 monthly compensation and benefits,” DepEd said in a statement. Ella Dionisio/DMS