Female teachers express annoyance over unpaid remuneration, lack of facilities for exam duties

Source: The Nation

ISLAMABAD - As the Federal Directorate of Educa­tion (FDE) gears up for the central­ized exams of primary and middle standard scheduled to begin on Monday, female teachers assigned to conduct exams have raised concerns over unpaid remuneration for the past three consecutive years and the absence of essential facilities.

Despite repeated attempts to address these concerns with FDE authorities, the teachers claim that their issues have not been resolved yet. Teachers complained that they haven't been paid for their exam work for the last three years in spite of assurances by the concerned of­ficials. Expressing their grievances under the condition of anonymity, several teachers disclosed a his­tory of unfulfilled promises and neglect by FDE authorities.

Despite assurances of payment for exam duties, teachers lamented that they have not received remu­neration for the last three years. A teacher highlighted the financial strain incurred while performing exam-related tasks, including the collection of exam materials. Hav­ing personally hired taxis to trans­port materials to exam centres, she emphasized that neither taxi fares nor transport facilities have been provided by the FDE.

"Moreover, I am expected to con­duct exam duties daily starting Monday, with no transport facili­ties provided. The daily taxi fare to and from the school where I am de­puted amounts to Rs. 2000, a cost I am compelled to bear personally for the entire 15-day examination period which is hard to manage during the prevailing price hike situation", the teacher said. "It is disheartening that the authorities not only fail to pay our pending re­muneration but also neglect to pro­vide essential transport facilities", the teacher said.

Talking to APP, many teachers emphasized the lack of financial support for purchasing essential materials such as clothes, sealing wax, thread, and packing mate­rial required for packaging answer scripts. They criticized the absence of paper collection facilities pro­vided by the authority, exacerbat­ing logistical challenges.

Highlighting additional chal­lenges, another teacher shared, "I have to purchase essential mate­rials such as clothes, sealing wax, thread, and packing materials to pack the answer scripts daily, but no funds have been provided for these expenses. Moreover, there is no paper collection facility provid­ed by the FDE. I cannot afford cab fare for transportation of answer scripts to FDE daily."

A headmistress of a school stat­ed, "Teachers have recently under­taken exhausting election duties, sacrificing sleep for two nights. In addition to their teaching respon­sibilities, teachers perform ad­ditional duties like census duties, election duties, invigilation, and deworming duties. Despite their contributions, teachers feel ne­glected and under-supported by FDE authorities, who have been unresponsive to their repeated pleas for assistance".

The headmistress emphasized that the FDE authorities should acknowledge and facilitate their efforts. At least their pending dues of three years should be released. When contacted, a senior official of the concerned authority said that the teachers are paid a specific amount for performing duties dur­ing the centralized exams of Class V and VIII.However these payments were pending with the AGPR.