DE JESUS, 1145

Overworked, Underpaid: A Teacher’s Chronicle

“Napakaraming guro dito sa amin, Ngunit bakit tila walang natira?” This poignant line from Gloc-9’s
song– Walang Natira, is a vivid reflection of the Filipino teachers’ condition nowadays. This is a bleak
reality that is tormenting the lives of many educators in the Philippines at the present and even at the past.

“Imagine, 'yung sasahurin mo rito sa Pinas within 1 year, 1 month lang sa US, pero kailangang pagtiyagaan
yung policies doon.” These are the exact words uttered by hardworking Filipino teacher in U.S, Dr. Xerxes
Budomo, who discovered a safe path to be a teacher in U.S. and even do social media contents about it.

Along with him is her 32-year-old wife, a former Senior High school teacher in Victoria National
High School, Criselda Budomo, a mother of two little boys and currently residing in Montana, USA. Mr.
and Mrs. Budomo are always happy to help others.
Mr. Budomo also stated on how hard it is to deal with children in the US– "In terms of behavior, napaka-
challenging ng mga bata sa US, kasi mahihirap talaga silang kausap."he said.
The Alliance of Concerned teachers (ACT) Chairperson Vladimer Quetua urged that the Department of
Education should take an immediate action to stop the departure of "the best of our teachers" to avoid doing
so.
"Teachers in public and private [schools] are both underpaid," said Quetua, pointing out that 92 percent of
public school teachers make between P25,000 and P30,000 a month in salary. According to ACT, some
private school teachers are paid P6,000 per month.
Quetua claims that a major contributing factor in the high number of Filipino teachers seeking employment
overseas is the Philippines' low salary rates.
“Leaving their own families and the Filipino students that they vowed to serve is a difficult decision that
teachers make, but the government is leaving us with no other choice, especially with such stance of the
DepEd being unsupportive of our call for salary upgrading,” he added.
In the Philippines and throughout Asia, public school teachers are among the professions with the lowest
salaries. It is a socioeconomic issue that impacts not just the teachers but also children and the country in
its entirety.
Given the low wages that public school teachers in our nation get, it is clear that both the profession's
importance and the caliber of applicants for teaching positions are low. Teachers in public schools are
frequently dismissed as mere government employees, omitting their crucial functions as second parents and
educators of the next generation of citizens.
Just like Mr. Budomo, every Juan is anticipating for a high wage– without jeopardizing their own lives or
the lives of their families, they want to maintain on doing what they are currently doing. In addition to
continuing to share knowledge, they also hope to further their own understanding. If they are paid
adequately and can continue teaching with a greater sense of optimism, there will be a decrease in burnout.
Teachers will be more fulfilled with their jobs and driven to meet organizational objectives if compensation
is given efficiently and adequately.