Filipino teachers and education workers are set to walk out of classrooms on October 3, marking World Teachers’ Day (WTD) 2025 with a nationwide protest to demand higher pay, address persistent shortages, and denounce alleged corruption in the education sector.

The Alliance of Concerned Teachers (ACT) Philippines announced on Tuesday, September 30, that thousands of teachers and education workers will stage a nationwide walkout this Friday. The protest coincides with the global observance of WTD, the National Teachers’ Day celebration, and the culmination of National Teachers’ Month.

“Hindi simpleng selebrasyon ang World Teachers’ Day ngayong taon (World Teachers’ Day is no simple celebration this year),” said ACT Chairperson Vladimer Quetua. “Ginugutom, pinapabayaan, at ginagawang gatasan ng mga tiwaling opisyal ang pondo ng mamamayan, kasama na ang pondo para sa edukasyon (Corrupt officials are starving, neglecting, and exploiting public funds—including those meant for education),” he added.

ACT said the protest will culminate in a march to Mendiola, where teachers will press for a bigger education budget, substantial salary hikes, and accountability for corruption that continues to deprive public schools of much-needed resources.

“Ang tanging tugon ng mga guro: kolektibong aksyon ng paniningil laban sa korapsyon at pagtindig para sa sweldo, edukasyon, at karapatan (The teachers’ only response: collective action to demand accountability, fight corruption, and stand up for wages, education, and rights),” Quetua said.

ACT stressed that teachers continue to endure meager wages, overcrowded classrooms, a lack of textbooks and learning materials, and heavier workloads, while government spending is funneled into “pork-laden infrastructure projects, confidential funds, and counterinsurgency programs such as the NTF-ELCAC.”

“Habang nilulunod sa kapabayaan ang mga guro at estudyante, sagad-sagaran naman ang bilyon-bilyong ibinubuhos sa bulsa ng mga opisyal at sa mga proyektong ginagawang gatasan ng kikbak (While teachers and students are drowning in neglect, billions are shamelessly funneled into the pockets of officials and into projects turned into kickback machines),” Quetua said.

“Hayagang larawan ito ng nabubulok na sistemang burukrata-kapitalismo (This is a blatant portrait of a decaying bureaucrat-capitalist system),” he added.

The group outlined its six-point agenda for the October 3 walkout:

- Salary increase – P50,000 entry pay for Teacher I, ₱36,000 minimum for support staff, Salary Grade 16 for Instructor I, and equal pay for private school teachers.

- Education budget hike – Doubling the budget to meet 6% of GDP by reallocating funds from debt payments, corruption, and militarism.

- Accountability – Prosecution of corrupt officials.

- Teachers’ rights – End to attacks on unions and military presence in schools.

- Education reform – Rejection of a colonial, commercialized, and repressive education system.

- National sovereignty – Opposition to foreign intervention and militarization.

ACT emphasized that World Teachers’ Day 2025 will not be marked with token recognition but with protest and assertion.

“Sa Oktubre 3, hindi kami magdiriwang—kami ay lalaban (On October 3, we will not celebrate—we will rise and resist),” Quetua said, stressing that WTD is not about hollow praises from the same government that abandons teachers. “It is about the collective voice of teachers demanding justice, dignity, and real support for education,” he added.