Demanding ‘equal pay for equal work’, teachers begin hunger strike

CHENNAI: Nearly 20,000 secondary-grade teachers (SGT) affected during the seventh pay commission staged an indefinite hunger strike at DPI campus in Chennai on Tuesday.

The members of Secondary Grade Seniority Teacher's Association (SSTA) allege that teachers appointed after June 2009 are facing a pay discrepancy of Rs 3,170 for the same amount of work than those appointed on or before May 31, 2009.

Further, in the seventh pay commission, this discrepancy had further widened.

Despite repeated protests, the long-pending demand of SGTs on equal pay for equal work has still not been met by both the previous AIADMK government and current DMK government.

In this case, SGTs began an indefinite hunger strike on Tuesday to make their demands heard.

Thousands of teachers participated in this protest and raised slogans to end the wage discrepancy.

J Robert, the General Secretary of SSTA said, "Our voices are still unheard by the government, despite keeping the fight going on for the last 12 years. 20,000 teachers getting paid a lesser salary for the same educational qualification and for doing the same job, should be rectified immediately by the government."

However, Robert says despite DMK promising to address the issue during the assembly election last year, no action has been taken so far.

"We have continued the protest as we are left with no options. We are protesting during the half-yearly vacation so that the students' education is not affected. The protest will continue until the Tamil Nadu government gives a firm decision on this issue, "added Robert.

Meanwhile, SSTA statement noted, "Owing to an indefinite hunger strike, in 2018, and with no response from the AIADMK government, the then DMK opposition leader Stalin urged the government to pay equal salary for equal work to about 20,000 teachers in the State."