Everyone wants to earn good pay after school. Unfortunately, teaching is one of those professions not well remunerated in Nigeria.
In Nigeria, it seems public school teachers fare better than those in the private sector in terms of pay. Teachers in the private sector who enjoy relatively good pay work for highbrow private schools where they earn up to N150,000 and above. However, not all highbrow schools pay well. Also, pay usually depends on the teachers’ level of experience and qualification. In the public sector, teachers working in secondary schools run by the Federal Government get paid higher than those in public schools run by state governments (N60,000-N70,000 – entry level to N100,000 and above for senior teachers – for Lagos State).
At the bottom of the pay ladder are private school teachers working for low-cost primary and secondary schools. Some years ago, I did a story about teachers’ pay in such schools in 2015 and was shocked to learn that some were paid as low as N7,000 – well below the former minimum wage of N19,000. A head teacher who earned N20,000 in such school was deemed well paid. At secondary level, my findings was that teachers earned between N20,000 and N30,000. In middle-cost schools, I learnt teachers get paid between N40,000 and N100,000 based on their levels.
With our economy, we know that even those paid N150,000 and have to pay rent, school fees, and other living expenses can barely make ends meet. So, N150,000 is hardly money to glamourize. Yet, majority of our teachers do not earn as much. To make matters worse, some employers would owe teachers for months. These employers are found both in the public and private sector. Some state governments are notorious for owing workers, including teachers. In 2017, Kogi State owed teachers 15-month salary arrears; while Benue owed up to 10. Abia, Oyo, Ondo and Ekiti States were also on the debtors’ list according to Budgit. In the private sector, some employers also owe the meagre salaries they pay teachers – blaming it on school fee default or high operations costs. It is also common for teachers, especially from low-cost schools to earn half-salaries during the holidays.
With such poor pay, how are teachers expected to give their best? Chief Executive Officer of Leading Learning, Mrs Folasade Adefisayo, who is on the cabinet list of Lagos State, said during a plenary session at the NEDIS Summit earlier this month that in Osun, where she superintended over rural schools, some teachers could not afford transport costs to school every day. She said they often had to walk part of the way to be able to make it to school. To augment their pay, she said teachers have to do other things – like selling consumables. This does not happen in Osun State alone. Many teachers have to engage in other commercial activities to boost their income. In Lagos, many public school teachers sell all sorts – food items, fabrics, and the like. Some start side businesses like catering for parties; and acting as Masters of Ceremonies (Alaga Iduro and Alaga Ijoko) at wedding ceremonies. In fact, teachers are now so adept at their Alaga roles that they have begun training others.
Having to do so many other activities to make ends meet – more often than not – affects a teacher’s productivity. Such teacher is distracted from the main task of teaching. He or she, worried about the where the next day’s meal would come from, could transfer aggression to the learners. If not transferred aggression, he/she could care less about what happens to them and not really promote their success.
Good pay would go a long way to boost the image of the teaching profession. And, if Indonesia, classified as a lower-middle income country like Nigeria can pay all its teachers, both public and private, good wages – with extra pay for productive teachers and those serving in rural areas, then we can achieve same in Nigeria. It only takes a government that places priority on empowering its citizens to do so.
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