Groups mourn death of 'overworked' teacher; urged DepEd to address workload concerns
Teachers' group mourned the death of their fellow teacher in Bicol who reportedly passed away after attending teaching duties despite not feeling well.

The Alliance of Concerned Teachers (ACT) - Bicol and the Teachers’ Dignity Coalition (TDC), in separate statements, expressed condolences to the bereaved family of a 57-year-old teacher who passed away due to overwhelming “stress and pressure.”
In a statement issued by ACT Region V union president Oliver Lucinario on Thursday, Sept. 14, the teacher who passed away earlier asked to file a leave of absence but the school head reportedly refused due to scheduled classroom observation.
Citing reports from the family, ACT said that the teacher was forced to go to work despite not feeling well. After the scheduled activity, the teacher went to the hospital and died on Sept. 13.
ACT said that the incident has proven once again the “problematic system” of DepEd when it comes to the workload of teachers.
While the agency has good programs, ACT said that there are challenges in the implementation and the teachers are the ones who are expected to address the problems related to the program.
ACT also urged DepEd to address the shortage in basic education resources such as classrooms and learning materials so the teachers will not be forced to fill in these gaps.
Meanwhile, TDC also reiterated the need for DepEd to seriously address the concerns of teachers related to their workload.
TDC said that the demise of the teacher in Bicol allegedly due to too much work also reflects the ordeal of other teachers nationwide who also suffer from “unfair workload.”
“Ang solusyon sa maraming trabaho ay paramihin din ang magta-trabaho at hindi itambak ang mga trabahong ito sa iilang tao (The solution to many jobs is also to increase the number of workers and not to pile these jobs on a few people),” TDC said.
The group once again pushed for the hiring of teaching and non-teaching personnel based on the needs in the field.
TDC also urged DepEd to ensure that the “six-hour workday” policy would be implemented for all teachers nationwide.
READ:
https://mb.com.ph/2022/09/12/deped-urged-to-implement-a-six-hour-workday-for-teachers-nationwide/