Teachers get pay rise

By SAMANTHA KATI
TEACHERS will receive their long-awaited three per cent pay increase from July 10.
The pay No.14 changes would include other allowances as well, says Papua New Guinea Teaching Service Commission (TSC) chairman Samson Wangihomie.
He said instruments for the three per cent award were contained in a memorandum of agreement (MoA 2023-25) signed between the PNG Teachers Association (PNGTA) and the TSC in December, effectively replacing as well as renewing the 2017-19 agreement between the parties.
“By the time we signed the agreement, the 2024 National Budget 2024 had been passed; so there was nothing budgeted for this particular exercise,” Wangihomie said when explaining the delay.
Finance secretary Samuel Penias in a statement last Thursday confirmed the July 10 payment.
“The department is pleased to announce significant progress in the implementation of the 3% salary increase for teachers, backdated to 2023,” he said.
Wangihomie said four tests were done by payroll to ensure all teachers were captured in the exercise.
Penias said the increase was aimed at adjusting salaries as per the 2023-25 MoA, which “has undergone extensive testing to ensure accuracy and compliance”.
He said the testing phase began in pay nine of this year, and involved multiple tests using the Alesco non-production environment.
“These tests are crucial to confirm that the new salary rates and allowances are correctly configured for payment.
“We acknowledge the concerns of all stakeholders, especially in light of past pay issues with the PNG Defence Force,” Penias stated.
He also announced the identification of several challenges which were being addressed.
They included:

• ADJUSTMENT to the annual base salary for all teachers’ grades and classifications;
• OVERPAYMENT of taxes and superannuation contributions, which will be reimbursed accordingly;
• NEGATIVE figures in superannuation and tax contributions as a result of the separation of the service allowance from the salary as contained in the Teachers MoA 2023-25.

This separation of the salary and service allowance is consistent with the disciplinary forces giving recognition to the risk and hardship teachers faced during the execution of their duties; and

• RESOLVING terminated records for numerous teachers who were in service in 2023 to ensure accurate bulk uploads.

“We are on track to finalise the implementation and are targeting Pay 14 for the processing of the three per cent salary increase.
“Our teams are working diligently to ensure all issues are resolved promptly,” Penias added.
Wangihomie indicated that one of the allowances to be paid would be the 15 per cent Teaching Service Allowance (TSA) – an increase from the previous agreement.
“All teachers from elementary right up to the national schools of excellence (NSoE) will be paid a 15 per cent TSA,” he said.
Also included were the mining enclave allowance, disadvantages school allowances, flexible open distance education (Fode) teachers allowance and responsibilities allowance for head teachers.
“The TSC has elevated and reclassified all base level pays to one level up.
“Primary schools on level two (TSO2) will now be paid on TSO3 salary,” he said.
High schools and secondary school teachers would now be paid on TSO4 salary, NSoE teachers would be paid on TSO5 while teachers serving at inclusive education school (for persons living with disabilities) and technical vocational education training (Tvet) centres would be paid at TSO4 level.
“While we do this for them, we now call on them to be committed to serve the children in front of them,” Wangihomie said.