Teachers express gratitude to the government for its attention to the field of school education and the recent salary increase starting April 1. However, they also express concern about significant differences in salary coefficients for teachers of different subjects.
Teachers remind that before the introduction of Resolution No. 181 on March 30, 2022, salaries were not divided by subject, and the pay conditions for all teachers were equal. The introduction of different coefficients has created noticeable disparities in income levels despite equal workloads.
This situation raises concerns among the educational community and leads to tension in educational institutions.In their appeal, teachers emphasize that the Labor Code and the fundamental principles of trade union activity are based on social justice, which implies equal pay for work of equal value. This principle is the foundation of modern labor relations and prevents discrimination against workers on any grounds, including the specifics of the work performed when the complexity is equal.
Teachers note that the work of an educator, regardless of the subject, requires high qualifications, responsibility, resilience to stress, and continuous self-development.
Every educator, whether a teacher of language, history, mathematics, or natural sciences, makes an equally significant contribution to the education of future generations.“We understand that the previously increased coefficients for certain subjects were introduced to attract specialists to specific areas. However, practice has shown that this has caused a serious problem with unjustified salary differentiation for educators working with the same workload and complexity,” they emphasize.
The trade unions and the educational community request the Prime Minister:
- to create a working group with representatives from the Ministry of Education, trade unions, teachers, relevant ministries, and experts to revise the draft resolution;
- to reconsider the draft regarding differences in salary coefficients for teachers;
- to explore the possibility of establishing fairer pay conditions for educators based on the principle of equal pay for equal work.
Furthermore, we insist on the necessity of a unified basic salary coefficient for all teachers of general education subjects, without dividing them into "priority" and "non-priority" disciplines, which will ensure fairness and prevent conflicts within the educational community.
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We remind you that the last salary increase for teachers occurred in April 2022, when the payment system was changed: educators began receiving a salary based on a rate instead of hourly pay, with a limit on maximum workload introduced. Currently, the average salary is approximately 26,000 soms.The next increase is expected in April and October 2026. Teachers indicate that, according to available data, the increase will mainly affect teachers of STEM subjects, although the Ministry of Education denies this.
Teachers of humanities subjects, such as history, have repeatedly raised the issue of low coefficients in their salaries.
