MPO teachers give one-month ultimatum for job nationalisation

Teachers under monthly pay order (MPO) scheme issued a one-month ultimatum to the interim government on Wednesday for nationalisation of their jobs.

The MPO teachers of private educational institutions also said if the government fails to take visible and meaningful actions within the deadline, they would enforce a nationwide strike on 15 September.

The MPO teachers made the announcement from a press briefing at the National Press Club in the capital on Wednesday - following a meeting between leaders of the MPO-affiliated Education Nationalisation Alliance and the education adviser at the ministry.

The teachers said they have long been demanding integration of the private institution educators into the national pay scale as well as broader nationalisation of the private schools and colleges.

The teachers warned that if the government fails to respond to their demand, they would intensify their protests that might create disruption to the education sector.

Earlier on the day, thousands of teachers of the MPO-registered institutions from all 64 districts held a rally in front of the National Press Club, demanding nationalisation of their institutions. The programme brought traffic to a standstill on the major routes around Shahbag.

Amid the demonstration, Education Adviser Dr C R Abrar expressed his willingness to meet with the teachers' representatives. A delegation of ten teachers went to the Secretariat at around 1:30 pm and met with the adviser.

However, the education adviser clearly told them that the interim government would not be able to nationalise thousands of private educational institutions under the MPO scheme.

"The interim government cannot engage in nationalisation of so many educational institutions. It is an extremely complex and challenging issue - beyond our capacity. Only an elected political government can undertake such a massive reform," the teachers said quoting Dr Abrar.

They noted that the education adviser assured them that the interim administration is willing to address other key demands of the MPO teachers.

During the meeting, the teachers pressed for universal transfer rights, revised house rent, and increased medical allowances. In response, a nine-member committee was formed to verify and assess the universal transfer issue.

Following the "positive and fruitful" meeting with the education adviser, the teachers announced the end of their rally at around 3:00 pm and began returning to their home districts.

Meanwhile, the Ministry of Education has sent a proposal to the Ministry of Finance to increase house rent and medical allowances for the MPO-affiliated teachers.

As per the proposal, the monthly house rent allowance, currently Tk 1,000, would be raised to Tk 2,000, and medical allowance would be doubled from Tk 500 to Tk 1,000.

The proposal was disclosed during the meeting between the Ministry of Education officials and the Alliance leaders. However, the teacher leaders said the proposed increase has been met with dissatisfaction.

They opined that the fixed-amount allowance does not reflect actual living costs and fails to address systemic inequities. They demanded that house rent be calculated as a percentage of basic salary, in line with the rules for the government employees.

talhabinhabib@yahoo.com