Junta slashes allowances for education staff in Maungdaw

By Admin 31 May 2023

DMG Newsroom
31 May 2023, Maungdaw

Government employees serving in Maungdaw District in Arakan State are entitled to double their standard salary scale. But for two consecutive months, education staff in Maungdaw District have only received their base salaries.

Education staff only received their base salaries in April and May, and they were told that it was because of financial constraints, said an education staff member from Maungdaw.

“We want to get our usual salary package, which is double our base salary. Life can be really difficult here if we don’t get the double pay,” he said.

Though educators were not given the double pay for the past two months, they received between 50,000 to 70,000 kyats of allowance per head.

As transportation services are poor and prices are higher in Maungdaw District than other townships, education staff are struggling to make ends meet with their base salaries.

“Last month, I only received a little over 200,000 kyats, which is a combined amount of salary and hardship allowance. I can barely support my family. It will have a serious impact on my family including my children if we will only be given our base salaries for next few months,” said primary school principal U Kyaw Aye Hlaing in Jeitchaung village in Maungdaw Township.

Food prices have soared in Maungdaw and Buthidaung townships which make up Maungdaw District. A sack of Paw Hsan Hmwe rice has reached 120,000 kyats, and three eggs are sold for 1,000 kyats. The prices of other basic foods have also doubled, said residents.

Some education staff would resign if they don’t get their salary package for the next few months.

A middle school teacher working in Buthidaung Township said: “If this continues, me and other teachers will resign or we will apply for transfers to schools in other areas. Though the teachers who are natives of Maungdaw District can still cope with it, teachers who come from other parts can’t.”

The regime issues notices about the double pay for government employees working in Maungdaw District every three months. The regime has not issued a notice since April, said an officer of Maungdaw Township education office.

“Normally, we receive notices from Naypyidaw every three months about the double pay. According to our understanding, it is because of financial constraints. I heard that there won’t be double pay for the next few months,” he said.

Since 2016, all the government employees including border guard police in Maungdaw District are entitled to double their base salaries because of security risks and transportation problems in the area. It remains unclear if government employees from other departments have also faced salary deductions.