(We yield this place to the statement of the Alliance of Concerned Teachers due to its timeliness. – Ed.)
WOMEN teachers join all the working women across the globe in the commemoration of the International Women’s Day. We march with our call for decent salaries at the forefront, this being the most pressing problem of teachers who act as breadwinner to their families while serving as second parents to students as we take upon ourselves the heavy responsibility of educating the youth for nation-building.
Jobs that are perceived to be extensions of domestic work and are therefore traditionally given to women continue to be poorly compensated and severely undervalued. This is especially true in a feudal-patriarchal society like the Philippines.
Some glaring examples are teachers, of whom 80 percent are women, and clerical workers within the education sector. Despite the indispensable role of educators in moulding the minds of the youth and in national development, they are some of the least paid among professionals in the country.
Teachers are often called secondary parents to our children due to their vital role in moulding critical minds among the youth. They take on multiple tasks and roles both inside their schools and in their homes with their families.
However, much like mothers, their work in education and contribution in national development is undervalued. In other countries, teachers are some of the highest paid employees in recognition of their significance in society. Here, their pay falls short of the necessary amount for decent living. In fact, the entire education sector remains in a dismal state as year after year, the government reduces its budget so as to fund its wars against the people.
Instead of duly addressing teachers’ legitimate concerns and just demands, the state decided to launch an all-out attack on us and our organization, the Alliance of Concerned Teachers. Educators in previous months have been subjected to vilification, harassment, and terrorist-tagging, as part of the state’s orchestrated effort to stifle dissent and to quell the growing unrest among the people. These tyrannical measures threaten to undermine democracy.
Hence, teachers persistently and resolutely fight for decent salaries, better working conditions, and for free and quality education. We join women from all sectors in calling for an end to the systematic abuse and exploitation of women, as well as to call for social justice.
