Teachers in Kaoma to strike over removed allowances

Teachers in Kaoma District of Western Province have threatened to down tools if government implements its decision of removing double class and responsibility allowances.

Zanis reports from Mongu, that Three teacher unions said this when they stormed Kaoma District commissioner, Joster Manjolo’s office yesterday.

Zambia National Union of teachers (ZNUT), Chairperson Musangu Chipango says his members have objected the halting of their double class and responsibility allowances as the move will negatively affect the performance of teachers and thereafter that of pupils in the District.

Mr. Chipango has proposed that government should instead take stock of all its teachers in order to target only those that are getting these allowances illegally as opposed to an all inclusive withdrawal of the allowance as even the more deserving teachers will be unfairly deprived.

And Basic Education Teachers Union of Zambia (BETUZ) Chairperson, Inambao Mutata says his union supports the notion of equal pay for equal work but that it does not support teachers who were getting double class and responsibility allowances for poor quality service delivery.

Mr. Mutata however notes that the removal of the double class and responsibility allowances will disadvantage teachers attending to more than one class in under staffed schools and such a situation will also have an impact on pupils who are towards writing their exams.

Meanwhile Kaoma District Commissioner Joster Manjolo has since allocated transport to all the three teacher unions in the District to take stock of the teachers in about 100 schools spread across the Kaoma to find out deserving teachers for the allowances.

Mr. Manjolo has however maintained that government’s move to remove the responsibility and double class allowances will pay way to ensuring that only deserving teachers get such allowances.