A rally by assistant teachers from government primary schools across Bangladesh is underway at Dhaka’s Central Shaheed Minar, pressing for three major demands: upgrading entry-level assistant teacher positions to the 11th grade of the national pay scale, granting higher grades for teachers with 10 and 16 years of service, and ensuring 100 percent promotion from assistant to head teacher roles.
The rally, which began on Saturday morning, was organised by the Sahakari Shiksha Sangathan Oikya Parishad, a coalition of six primary teacher organisations.
Thousands of teachers from across the country have gathered, filling the Shaheed Minar premises to capacity.
Teachers have warned of stricter actions if their demands are not met.
BNP Organising Secretary and teacher leader Selim Bhuiyan attended the rally, expressing solidarity and promising that, if his party gains a majority, these demands will be fulfilled. Leaders from other political parties are also expected to show support.
Supreme Court lawyer Mohammad Siddiq Ullah Mia, speaking at the rally, pledged to pursue legal action on behalf of the teachers if their demands remain unmet.
Mohammad Shamsuddin Masud, convener of the assistant teachers’ Oikya Parishad and president of the Bangladesh Primary School Assistant Teachers’ Association, also addressed the gathering.
Masud previously told The Daily Samakal that the demand for the 11th grade has been long-standing, with unfulfilled government assurances.
He said that the Ministry of Primary and Mass Education recently forwarded their proposal to the National Pay Commission via the Ministry of Finance, but teachers view this as a delay tactic.
Masud highlighted that around 300,000 assistant teachers have been denied higher grades due to misinterpretations by the Ministry of Finance.
Additionally, they seek 100 percent promotions to fill approximately 36,000 vacant head teacher posts.
Bangladesh has 65,567 government primary schools with 384,000 teachers. Currently, head teachers are in the 10th grade (starting salary: 16,000 taka), while assistant teachers are in the 13th grade (starting salary: Tk11,000), creating a salary gap of about Tk15,000 after a decade of service.
Assistant teachers consider this disparity discriminatory, noting that historically, the salary difference between head and assistant teachers was minimal. Many head teachers also support upgrading assistant teachers to the 11th grade alongside their own 10th-grade status.
To press their demands, assistant teachers previously staged phased strikes, starting with an hour-long strike from May 5 to 15, followed by a full-day strike. They paused the protests after a ministry meeting on May 29, but the rally signals their renewed push for action.
LND/NE
