In the letter, teachers express gratitude for the attention to the education sector and the recent salary increase effective April 1. However, they also raise the issue of existing differences in salary coefficients for teachers of different subjects.
Representatives of the teaching community remind that prior to the enactment of Resolution No. 181 dated March 30, 2022, salaries were unified, and teachers of different disciplines received equal basic conditions. The introduction of various coefficients has led to a serious imbalance in salaries, even though the volume and complexity of work remained comparable.
This raises concerns among the teaching community and creates tension in educational institutions.“We want to emphasize that the Labor Code and the fundamental principles of trade union work are based on social justice - equal pay for work of equal value. This principle is the foundation of modern labor relations and serves to prevent discrimination based on any criteria, including the specifics of the work performed when the complexity and responsibility are equal,” the appeal states.
Teachers also emphasize that their work, regardless of the subject, requires high qualifications, responsibility, resilience, and continuous self-development.
Every educator, whether a math, history, or language teacher, makes an equally important contribution to the education and upbringing of future generations of our country.“We understand that the introduction of increased coefficients for certain subjects was aimed at attracting specialists to these fields. However, in practice, this has created a problem of unjustified salary differentiation among teachers engaged in comparable work,” the teachers underline.
Trade unions and the teaching community appeal to the Prime Minister with a request to:
- create a working group involving ministries, trade unions, and experts to refine the draft resolution;
- review the draft to eliminate differences in salary coefficients between teachers of different subjects;
- ensure fairer working conditions based on the principle of equal pay for equal work.
It is also necessary to consider establishing a single basic coefficient for all teachers of general education subjects to avoid dividing them into "priority" and "non-priority" disciplines. Such a step will help ensure fair treatment of all educators and prevent conflicts in the educational environment.
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It is worth noting that the last salary increase for teachers occurred in April 2022. At that time, the salary calculation system was changed: educators now receive a salary based on a rate rather than hourly, with limits on maximum workload. Currently, the average salary is about 26,000 soms.The next increase is expected in April and October 2026. Teachers note that, according to available data, the increase will primarily affect STEM discipline educators, although the Ministry of Education denies this. History and humanities teachers have repeatedly expressed dissatisfaction with the low coefficient in their salaries.
