Unpaid Salaries Leave Second Shift Teachers in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa in Financial CrisisUnpaid Salaries Leave Second Shift Teachers in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa in Financial Crisis In Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, teachers working the second shift in primary and secondary schools have gone unpaid for months, causing significant financial hardships amidst rising living costs. The second shift schools were established by the previous government to improve literacy rates in the province. However, the provincial government has failed to implement timely salary payments for these teachers. Despite the government setting a minimum wage of Rs 32,000 last year, teachers in the second shift are paid as low as Rs 20,000, with class IV employees receiving a mere Rs 5,000 monthly. The prolonged salary delays have left teachers struggling to make ends meet. The Ministry of Education and provincial government officials have remained silent on the issue, despite protests from the affected teachers. The ministry has indicated that the provincial government may consider closing the second shift program if the situation does not improve. This would be a major setback for education in the province, potentially reducing access to schools for many students. Last year, the government had released funds for second shift schools in 25 districts, but the subsequent suspension of payments has left the project in jeopardy. The plight of unpaid teachers highlights the challenges faced by the education sector in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. Urgent action is needed to resolve this issue and ensure that teachers are paid their due salaries.
PESHAWAR:
The provincial government has not paid salaries to second shift teachers in primary and secondary schools in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa for months, pushing them into a financial crisis amid the high cost of living.
To increase literacy rate, the former government of Pakistan Tahereek-e-insaf (PTI) established second schools at primary, secondary and higher secondary levels in most districts.
The monthly salaries were fixed at Rs 20,000 for primary school teachers in the second shift, Rs 25,000 for secondary and higher secondary teachers and Rs 30,000 for higher secondary teachers.
Ironically, the salary for class IV employees in the second shift was fixed at just Rs5,000 per month. However, unemployment in the province was so high that even highly educated youth applied for the jobs, despite meager wages.
It is worth mentioning here that the provincial government had fixed Rs 32,000 as minimum wage for the last financial year but had failed to implement these regulations in government departments.
The provincial education department used the pretext of a financial crisis to halt the process of timely payment of salaries to teachers working in second-shift schools.
As a result, teachers in the second shift and employees in class IV have not been able to receive their monthly salary for several months.
The Ministry of Education and provincial government officials have remained mum on the issue despite repeated protests from workers. The officials of the Ministry of Education told The Express Tribune that if the situation remains the same, it is possible that the provincial government may decide to close the project altogether.
It may be recalled that last year in August, the CP government released funds for double-shift schools in 25 districts of the province.
