Senatorial Candidate Legarda Continues Push for the Welfare of Teachers

House Deputy Speaker and Antique Representative Loren Legarda expressed her support for teachers and non-teaching personnel, particularly in forwarding the Philippines’ education system, during the Alliance of Concerned Teachers’ (ACT) Ang Senador at Ang Edukasyon: Senatorial Forum. The forum was organized in order to provide senatorial aspirants with a platform to elaborate on their plans for the education sector.

Legarda, who is likewise a senatorial candidate, noted that the needs of teachers and non-teaching personnel should be addressed alongside the development of good infrastructure and facilities for students as she detailed her plans for improving the access and the quality of education in the country.

“Ang salary grade ng entry level public school teachers ay Salary Grade 11 lamang na nasa mahigit ₱25,000 sa kasalukuyang Salary Standardization tranche. Naitaas na po natin ang sweldo ng mga military and uniformed personnel, gayundin ang ating mga nurses,” Legarda explained. (“The salary grade of entry level public school teachers is only Salary Grade 11 which is over ₱25,000 in the current Salary Standardization tranche. We have raised the salaries of military and uniformed personnel, as well as our nurses.”)

“We also have to push for a competitive salary for our teachers. I had previously filed bills for the upgrading of teachers’ salaries when I was at the Senate. I filed it again in the House of Representatives, and I am going to continue pushing for the approval of this long-overdue measure that is so important to the teaching profession.”

During her term as the Chairperson of the Senate Committee on Finance, Legarda had pushed for vital amendments focusing on the welfare of Filipino teachers. In 2015, through her intervention, the chalk allowance was increased from ₱1,000 to ₱1,500 per teacher. This has since been raised to ₱2,500 and to ₱3,500 in 2017 and 2018, respectively. Meanwhile, 2019 also marked the first time that public school teachers received their World Teachers’ Day incentive — which is now given every 5th of October — following Legarda’s ₱800-million allocation under the General Appropriations Act (GAA).

“I have always pushed for the better welfare of our teachers because we owe much of our achievements to them. We must promote and advance the social, economic, and professional status of teachers and non-teaching personnel as they all play an invaluable role in national development,” she affirmed.

The three-term senator is also the co-author for both the proposed Magna Carta for Public School Teachers as well as the Magna Carta for Private School Teachers. The former is aimed at providing public school teachers with additional benefits such as security of tenure, adequate wages, and substantive rights related to gender equality while the latter is devoted to addressing the welfare of teachers in private institutions.

Legarda also emphasized her support for all the educators seeking the right compensation for teaching overload and overtime pay, which was not included in the 2022 GAA. She pledged to coordinate with the Department of Education (DepEd) in order to guarantee that teachers who go beyond their mandate are well compensated.

“Aside from their teaching duties, teachers are likewise most reliable in serving the general welfare. They go beyond their duties in the classroom, notably when they serve during election period and when they aid the Philippine Statistics Authority in gathering data from households across the country,” said Legarda.

“Amid the pandemic, preparation of self-learning modules for students, aside from adjusting to the blended learning system, ensuring compliance to their reportorial requirement, and attending to various online trainings, while facilitating the extended Brigada Eskwela, Oplan Balik Eskwela, enrolment, and other related activities, were added to their tasks.”

The senatorial candidate pointed out several laws and bills that she filed which could support the improvement of the education system. These include Republic Act (RA) 10931 or the Universal Access to Quality Tertiary Education Act; RA 10533 or the Enhanced Basic Education Act of 2013; the HB 10405 or the One Tablet, One Student Act; and, HB 7034 which aims to provide a monthly internet allowance for all public school teachers, among others. 

“We should guarantee our teachers adequate support to motivate them more. I have championed laws and programs for the expansion of benefits and incentives, and the strengthening of professional development programs of our teachers since my first term in the Senate and I will continue to push for the greater welfare of our unsung heroes,” Legarda asserted.