Primary school teachers to hold mass rally on Saturday

Primary school teachers across the country have called for a mass rally on Saturday, August 30, at the Central Shaheed Minar in Dhaka, demanding the government implement the 11th grade salary scale for assistant teachers.

This move comes after the government’s recent decision to grant head teachers in government primary schools the 10th grade pay scale. However, assistant teachers remain excluded from similar pay grade reforms, prompting widespread demands for their inclusion in the 11th grade salary bracket.

The rally is being organized by the ‘Primary Assistant Teacher Organization Unity Council,’ a coalition of six assistant teacher associations representing government primary schools.

Mohammad Shamsuddin Masud, president of the Bangladesh Primary School Assistant Teachers Association, said, “We have long been advocating for the 11th grade pay scale. Despite repeated government assurances, our demands remain unfulfilled. While the decision to upgrade head teachers’ salaries to the 10th grade has been finalized, assistant teachers have been left behind. This is why we are staging a mass rally on Saturday.”

Leaders of the coalition have called on the Ministry of Primary and Mass Education to revise the report of its consultation committee and set the entry-level salary for assistant teachers at the 11th step of the national pay scale. They also demand higher grades after 10 and 16 years of satisfactory service and 100% promotion from assistant teacher to head teacher positions.

Teachers have been campaigning for the 11th grade pay scale for several years. After the fall of the previous Awami League government last year, the caretaker government formed on August 8, 2024, recommended the 12th grade salary scale for assistant teachers. Concurrently, the government initiated implementation of the 10th grade pay scale for all head teachers nationwide. Despite these measures, assistant teachers continue to press for timely recognition and pay reform.

While the government has promised to address the issue through a new pay scale, teachers are pressing for swift action and have called the rally to emphasize their demands.