Malaysia's Education Ministry has reversed its decision
to cut the pay and benefits of relief teachers after a standoff that threatened
to disrupt classes in the new school year.
Instead, relief teachers will
continue to enjoy bonuses, employer contributions to their retirement savings
scheme and school holiday pay, Deputy Education Minister Wee Ka Siong announced
on Monday.
The decision - made just two
weeks before school reopens - averted a potential teacher boycott and a
showdown with the powerful United Chinese School Committees Association of
Malaysia, more commonly known as Dong Zong.
But the heated dispute, which
has escalated over the last few weeks, has already stoked much unhappiness
among the Chinese community, which has often griped about its Chinese schools
and staff being unfairly treated.
Relief teachers in Malaysia are
mostly made up of students waiting to enter university or the teacher's
college, although there are also those who do relief teaching full-time.
Relief teachers in Chinese
schools make up more than two-thirds of the 5,000-plus relief teachers here,
according to figures released by the Education Ministry last year. About 20 per
cent of Malaysian children - mostly ethnic Chinese - go to Chinese-medium
schools.
Chinese relief teachers play an
important role, partly because of a lack of qualified full-time Chinese
teachers, as well as the increasing popularity of Chinese primary schools.
So when the ministry said last
month that it was cutting benefits due to budgetary constraints, it created a
swift uproar among the community.
Relief teachers, many of whom
earn less than RM2,000 (US$630) a month, said this would cause them to lose a
few hundred ringgit in income each month. Many refused to sign the new
contracts.
Dong Zong threatened to hold a
nationwide protest last week, before the authorities relented and reinstated
the old terms.
But the damage may have already
been done, with several Chinese newspaper editorials hitting out at civil
servants for not understanding the ground sentiment.
An editorial in the China
Press, referring to Prime Minister Najib Razak's national unity slogan, noted:
"Government officials have not carried out the 1Malaysia slogan of 'People
First, Performance Now'.
"It shows that, before
implementing a policy, they do not fully understand the situation or get
feedback from the people. This causes unnecessary trouble."
Dr Wee said the ministry was
training more Chinese teachers, which would ease the need for relief teachers.
He said the shortfall had narrowed from 3,700 people in 2008 to 2,800 people in
2009 and would drop further to 1,000 next year.
Teo Cheng Wee
The Straits Times
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