The militant Makabayan bloc on Monday, July 18, trooped outside the Batasang Pambansa Complex with teachers and other education workers to demand Congress to pass a law that would increase the budget for safe school reopening and better compensation for education personnel.

Kabataan Party-list Rep. Raoul Manuel, filed House Bill (HB) 251, or the Safe School Reopening Bill, in the 19th Congress to outline measures that would support the reopening of school classes next month and the transition to in-person classes by November.

““We urge DepEd to support the passage of the Safe School Reopening Bill if it is serious in its plans to transition to face-to-face classes,” he said.

The proposed law earmarked P63.2 billion for six key programs for a total of P122.4 billion to include funding for distance learning needs and compensation of personnel.

The programs will “ensure the safety and health of education stakeholders participating in face-to-face classes”, the group said in a statement accompanied by a copy of the bill.

The six key safety areas that Kabataan wants to ensure are the: Proper ventilation of learning spaces, on-campus health facilities and supplies, hiring of human resources for health, financial support for private educational institutions to implement safety measures, Covid-19 testing program for learners and education personnel, and medical fund for free treatment of learners and education personnel.

Manuel said it is high-time that education personnel are given the same benefits as workers in Congress who have access to free antigen testing weekly.

“Kung nagagawa na dapat ay merong pondo para sa (If they can provide budget for) free treatment sa ating mga (for our) government officials, insured kapag nagkasakit, dapat ganun din sa (when they get sick, it should be the same for our) education stakeholders natin at hindi pupwede na pabayaan ang mga paaralan (and we cannot neglect our schools),” the lawmaker said during the protest.

“Hindi na pupwede abusuhin na lng palagi ang kabutihang loob ng ating mga kaguruan para pilitin ‘yung mga bagay na dapat gobyerno ‘yung unang nagtitiyak (We cannot abuse the good nature of our teachers to force things that government should be providing),” he added, stressing the need for the government to shoulder the treatment of the students, teachers, and school personnel in case they catch Covid-19.

The Department of Education (DepEd), under Vice President and Education Secretary Sara Duterte, received a budget of P631.77 billion for 2022, or 12.58 percent of the total national budget for the year.

The agency received the biggest hike in the 2022 General Appropriations Act (GAA), although it initially asked for  P1.37 trillion for the year.

Meanwhile, the Alliance of Concerned Teachers (ACT) Philippines also called on Congress to pass HB 203 to increase the salaries of teachers and HB 1783 to increase the budget for education to at least 6 percent of the country’s gross domestic product (GDP) as recommended by the United Nations (UN).

The teachers’ group lamented that they have been left out after the police, military, and nurses saw their monthly salaries increased during the previous administration.

Vladimer Quetua, chairperson of ACT Philippines, cited the various economic woes faced by the country, including the ballooning inflation, the devaluation of the peso, and the rising costs of petroleum products.

“Ganito na kalala ang ekonomiya ng bansa, panahon na para itama ang distorsyon sa pasweldo ng pamahalaan kung saan napag-iwanan na ng ibang propesyunal ang sahod ng mga guro (This is how bad the economy of the country is, it is time to correct the distortion in government salary wherein teachers’ salaries have been left behind by other professions),” he said.

He lamented how they were made gullible by the Duterte administration, saying that he hoped the Marcos administration would hear their pleas.

"The low salaries of teachers are not commensurate to their needs and that of their families and to the indispensable role of teachers in delivering education to millions of youth. Our teachers’ economic hardships stem from the very basic problem of low salaries. They even have to take on odd jobs just to make ends meet and feed their families," he added.