Philippines: 16,000 new teachers sought, know the salaries, perks

Manila: In a significant move to address the chronic shortage of educators in public schools, the Philippine government has approved 16,000 new teaching positions for the school year beginning June 16. 

The Department of Budget and Management (DBM) announced the approval on May 18, marking the first batch of a planned 20,000 new hires aimed at bolstering the country’s education system.

ACT welcomes move, but says more needed

The Alliance of Concerned Teachers (ACT) welcomed the DBM's decision, calling it a major improvement compared to previous years.

Fewer than 10,000 new teaching posts were created annually, under the watch of Vice President Sara Duterte's term as education secretary.

Needed: 150,000 more teachers

However, ACT chair Vladimer Quetua emphasised that the 16,000 slots fall far short of the estimated 150,000 additional teachers needed to ensure quality education across the country.

He pointed out that during Duterte’s tenure, many of the newly-created positions remained unfilled due to bureaucratic delays. 

Applications often took two to three months to be processed, with many new hires starting as late as August or December.

Additionally, a number of applicants failed to meet the qualifying standards.

“Hopefully, all these 16,000 positions will be filled as soon as possible,” Quetua added, acknowledging the challenges involved.

Breakdown of new positions

According to the DBM, the 16,000 new teaching slots are composed of:

Budget Secretary Amenah Pangandaman stated that the move supports President Ferdinand Marcos Jr.’s directive to strengthen the education system.

She also affirmed that this initiative aligns with the Department of Education's (DepEd) push to expand teaching capacity from kindergarten to senior high school, including the Alternative Learning System (ALS).

Funding for the new hires will come from DepEd’s ₱4.194-billion ($75.4 million) allocation under the 2025 General Appropriations Act, specifically earmarked for new personnel.

Backlog, bureaucracy

Despite the promising development, ACT cautioned that without streamlining the hiring process, many of these positions may still remain vacant when classes resume in June.

DepEd was urged to process applications immediately and even consider mid-year hiring to fill gaps as the school year progresses.

Under former President Benigno Aquino III, the government regularly created up to 40,000 new teaching positions annually, significantly more than current numbers.

Historical context

The DBM has been gradually increasing the number of new teaching positions in recent years:

Despite these efforts, DepEd has struggled to fill the posts.

In Senate budget hearings in November 2023, it was revealed that only 3,352 out of 9,650 approved positions had been filled for the 2023–2024 school year.

As the new school year approaches, education advocates stress that the timely and efficient hiring of all 16,000 newly approved teachers will be crucial to relieving overcrowded classrooms and improving the quality of public education across the country.