CHENNAI: The Secondary Grade Teachers’ Association (SSTA) has urged the State government to resolve a long-pending pay anomaly affecting Secondary Grade Teachers (SGTs) appointed after June 1, 2009, while also placing before the School Education Department a set of demands aimed at improving the functioning of State-run schools and safeguarding the welfare of teachers and students.
In a representation addressed to Chief Minister C Joseph Vijay, the association said that teachers appointed before June 1, 2009, continued to receive a higher basic pay than those recruited after that date, despite both groups performing identical duties and possessing the same qualifications.
According to SSTA, the anomaly arose during the implementation of the Sixth Pay Commission, when the revised pay fixation resulted in post-2009 recruits starting with a lower basic pay. The association said that the disparity, initially amounting to Rs 3,170 in basic pay, had widened over the years due to annual increments and periodic pay revisions, affecting nearly 27,000 teachers across TN. It has appealed to the government to implement ‘equal pay for equal work’ by removing the disparity.
In a separate memorandum submitted to the director, the SSTA has sought several reforms for the private education sector. It demanded strict enforcement of the norms prescribed under the TN Private Schools Regulation Act and that schools functioning without adequate infrastructure or recognition not be allowed to admit students.
It also urged the department to ensure that teachers were not forced to handle non-teaching duties and that only qualified teachers were appointed for pre-primary classes such as LKG and UKG.
The SSTA also called for transparent fee regulation, timely approval of teacher appointments, the provision of essential learning materials such as tables, books and dictionaries to students, and strict implementation of the Right to Education (RTE) Act. It sought a limit of 25 students per section in LKG and UKG classes and recommended that schools maintain a teacher-student ratio of one teacher for every 7.5 students at the primary level to improve the quality of education.