Staff Reporter:
The united platform of primary assistant teachers’ associations has warned of launching a series of nationwide protest programs – including work abstention and hunger strikes – if their demand for upgrading the entry pay scale to the 11th grade is not met by November 15.
At a press conference held at the Abdus Salam Hall of the National Press Club, Shahinur Al Amin, president of the Bangladesh Primary Assistant Teachers’ Society, read out the written statement, while Anisur Rahman, president of the Bangladesh Primary Teachers’ Society, announced the protest programs.
In their joint statement, the organisations noted that nearly 380,000 assistant teachers in rural and suburban areas are playing a vital role in the country’s primary education system. Yet, they have long been suffering from professional and financial disparities.
Currently, assistant teachers are appointed under the 13th grade, with a starting salary of Tk17,650 per month – an amount the leaders described as “insufficient and disrespectful” considering current living costs.
They further argued that candidates with the same educational qualifications receive 10th or 11th grade positions in other government departments, making the current pay structure “discriminatory and inconsistent with the dignity of teachers.”
The statement also highlighted that since 2009, the process of departmental promotion has remained suspended. As a result, most teachers retire as assistant teachers without any upward mobility throughout their career.
The teachers’ alliance has placed the following three-point demand before the government:
1.Upgrade the entry-level grade for assistant teachers from 13th to 11th.
2.Simplify the process for obtaining higher grades after 10 and 16 years of service.
3.Ensure 100% departmental promotion opportunities for assistant teachers.
If the government fails to take visible steps by November 15, the organizations will begin a series of escalating protest programs:
1. Half-day work abstention: November 23-24
2. Full-day work abstention: November 25-26
3. Sit-in demonstration in front of the Directorate of Primary Education: November 27
Total boycott of scholarship and examination duties if demands remain unmet
Indefinite hunger strike starting from December 11.
Teacher leaders expressed hope that the government would take swift action to uphold the dignity of educators and address their legitimate demands.
They cautioned, however, that if their grievances remain ignored, the responsibility for any disruption in the country’s primary education system would rest squarely with the authorities.
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“We do not wish to disrupt education, but we can no longer accept such prolonged injustice,” said one of the organizers. “We urge the government to act before the situation reaches a breaking point.”
The ultimatum now places pressure on the Ministry of Primary and Mass Education to reach a resolution before the November 15 deadline, as tension grows among thousands of teachers across the country.
