Why are the valid demands of MPO-listed teachers hard to meet?
MPO-listed teachers continue to face low pay, minimal benefits, and systemic neglect — forcing them into the streets time and again. The recent spell of protests uncovers the economic, bureaucratic, and policy failures that keep one of society’s most vital professions in crisis
Amid ongoing protests across Dhaka, MPO-listed teachers have once again made headlines with their demands for better pay and benefits.
Despite being the architects of future generations, teachers are regularly forced to take to the streets to press home their demands for basic rights and benefits. More ironically, this comes just a week after the nation observed World Teachers' Day along with the rest of the world.
Teachers from non-government MPO-listed institutions across the country declared an indefinite work abstention starting Monday, protesting police 'excess' during their sit-in in front of the Jatiya Press Club the previous day (12 October). Police dispersed the demonstrators using water cannons, baton charges, and sound grenades.
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This is not the first time they have taken to the streets asking for salary review. They have long faced discrimination compared to their counterparts in government institutions. But the protests never brought any ultimate solution.
The latest wave of protests began this month after the finance ministry approved raising the house rent allowance by Tk500. Previously, they received Tk1,000 per month; the new rate is Tk1,500. They describe it as "disrespectful and unrealistic".
The teachers' demands include raising the house rent allowance to 20% of the basic salary, increasing the medical allowance to Tk1,500 for both teachers and employees, and raising the festival allowance for non-teaching staff to 75% of their basic pay.
In a country where teachers are being deprived in every way possible, it is almost impossible to produce students capable of taking helm and steer the country ahead. Syed Manzoorul Islam, recently deceased prominent educationist, also believed that good students cannot be made without good teachers.
"But the salaries of primary school teachers are so low that talented individuals are not drawn to the profession. My dream was that primary school teachers should earn around Tk60,000–70,000, in the current market. If that were the case, the most talented university graduates would be attracted to this profession," he earlier told The Business Standard.
"Society will, of course, respect teachers — but they need a respectable salary first," he noted.
According to Dr Khondaker Golam Moazzem, Research Director at the Centre for Policy Dialogue (CPD), teachers are supposed to be the most respected individuals in the society.
"But the fact that they take to the streets to protest makes it evident how we neglect the social protection sector. We saw teachers protesting during the previous Awami League government. We are seeing the same now," he said.
Then the question arises — if everyone agrees on the dignity of the teaching profession, why does it become so difficult for the government to increase their pay? Or, why doesn't the government show much interest in doing so?
Mohammad Nazmul Hossain Avi, a labour economist, said that the answer to this question lies in theory — how the labour market works.
"When there is an excessive supply of labour, it becomes difficult to increase wages. The number of MPO-listed teachers is very high, compared to low demand. The number of graduates eligible for this job is also high. Someone or another will do the job anyway," he said.
That's the economics at play. However, he firmly believes that their demands are valid.
"In fact, the amount they receive is absurd in today's market for maintaining a decent standard of living. The debate should be about the percentage of the increment, not whether it should be increased — because it definitely should," he noted.
So, how will the government fix this conflict of interest? What will be its motivation? Md Hossain suggested that the government see it as a form of investment and associate KPI (Key Performance Indicators) with it.
"It is essential to determine what value a teacher will add in return for a salary increment. At the same time, their performance over past years should be evaluated. It's a push for productivity. This will make it easier for the government to make decisions and ensure that the increment serves a purpose," he explained.
However, in the bigger picture, the problem is that we don't have any national wage policy.
"Nobody really knows how wages are actually set. Without a proper framework, the government cannot be held accountable. Even if not every year, there should at least be a policy to revise wages every two years. Without such a policy, you cannot claim that your salary is supposed to be increased now. That's why teachers have to take to the streets to protest. What should be a 'right' turns into a 'demand'," Md Hossain concluded.
"In fact, the amount they receive is absurd in today's market for maintaining a decent standard of living. It is essential to determine what value a teacher will add in return for a salary increment. At the same time, their performance over past years should be evaluated. It's a push for productivity. This will make it easier for the government to make decisions and ensure that the increment serves a purpose."
There are nearly 4 lakh MPO-listed school and college teachers and staff in Bangladesh. At the current rate, the government spends about Tk470 crore annually on house rent allowance, with Tk357 crore for school teachers and Tk112 crore for college teachers.
Against such a backdrop, the Finance Adviser Salehuddin Ahmed raised concerns that the government has recently added many educational institutions to the MPO scheme, which requires extra funds to pay the salaries and allowances of their teachers.
In short, the teachers are caught in the midst of bureaucracy that often complicates things instead of simplifying it. Dr Khondaker Golam Moazzem questions whether we really need such a large bureaucracy.
"By shifting much more towards digital systems, we could reduce the bureaucracy, retain only skilled individuals and increase their salaries, and still achieve the same level of output."
