How Are Teachers' Salaries at All Educational Levels Affected by the Covid-19 Pandemic?

How has the salary of teachers been affected by the Covid-19 pandemic? (Illustrative image)

1. Teacher salaries continue to be calculated based on statutory pay rate

According to Section 3.1.c, Part II of Resolution 27-NQ/TW, from 2021, the statutory pay rate will be abolished, and specific salaries for officials and public employees will be applied; these specific salaries will be calculated based on the job position of each individual.

The salaries of officials and public employees in 2021 will no longer be based on the statutory pay rate but will be calculated based on various factors, including the average minimum wage across different regions in the enterprise sector.

However, due to the impact of Covid-19, at the 13th Conference of the 12th Central Committee of the Communist Party, it was agreed upon with the recommendation of the Government of Vietnam that the implementation of the new salary policies will start from July 1, 2022, instead of 2021 as previously planned.

As a result, the statutory pay rate will continue to be used as the basis for calculating teacher salaries at 1.49 million VND/month (it will not be increased to 1.6 million VND/month), while maintaining the current allowances and subsidies.

<< We invite our customers and members to read more in the article Base salary 2021 of Vietnamese officials and public employees under the new situation.

2. Teachers continue to receive seniority allowances

According to the spirit of Resolution 27/NQ-TW, one of the contents of salary policy reform is to eliminate seniority allowances for officials and public employees in general and for teachers in particular (except for the military, police, and cryptographic sectors). In Decree 113/2015/ND-CP, it also specifically regulates the special allowances applied to integration teachers, artisan teachers, and highly skilled vocational teachers in public vocational education institutions.

In addition, Resolution 27/NQ-TW specifies that besides eliminating seniority allowances, some other allowances will also be abolished:

- Professional preference allowances (as it will be combined with professional responsibility allowances and hazardous allowances, collectively called professional allowances);- Attraction allowances (as it will be combined with special allowances and long-term working allowances in areas with particularly difficult socio-economic conditions, collectively called special area allowances).

Thus, according to the initial plan, from July 1, 2020, teachers receiving seniority allowances will no longer receive this allowance.

However, due to the impact of Covid-19, the salary policy reform for officials and public employees in general and teachers in particular under Resolution 27/NQ-TW will be postponed. Teachers at all levels will continue to receive the current seniority allowances until new information is available.

<< We invite our customers and members to read more in the article How is the seniority allowance of teachers calculated from 2021?.

3. Teacher salaries based on job positions are not yet implemented

According to Article 76 of the Education Law 2019, teachers are ranked according to their job positions and professional activities; they are prioritized to receive special professional allowances as regulated by the Government of Vietnam. Teacher salaries will be paid according to job positions and the complexity of the profession starting in 2020. This new salary policy reflects the spirit of salary policy reform under Resolution 27/NQ-TW of the Central Committee.

The Government of Vietnam will issue a professional salary scale according to the rank of officials and the job titles of public employees, applicable to officials and public employees who do not hold leadership positions. Each rank and job title will have multiple salary levels based on the principle of:

- The same level of job complexity will have the same salary;- For working conditions that are higher than normal and for those with professional preferences, it is implemented through professional allowance policies.

However, at the 13th Conference of the 12th Central Committee of the Communist Party, it was agreed to postpone the implementation of the new salary policies to July 1, 2022, instead of 2021 as previously scheduled.

<< We invite our customers and members to read more in the article The time for salary reform for officials and public employees will be postponed.

4. Teacher salary increases according to the plan are not yet implemented

Resolution 27-NQ/TW states that the salary increase for officials and public employees will be implemented according to the following plan:

- In 2021, the minimum salary for officials and public employees will be equal to the average minimum wage across regions in the enterprise sector;- By 2025, the minimum salary for officials and public employees will be higher than the average minimum wage across regions in the enterprise sector;- By 2030, the minimum salary for officials and public employees will be equal to or higher than the minimum wage in the highest region of the enterprise sector.

Currently, the salaries of officials and public employees in general and teachers in particular are lower than those of workers in the enterprise sector. According to the spirit of Resolution 27-NQ/TW, this gap will be narrowed. Besides, officials and public employees will periodically have their salaries adjusted to match the consumer price index, economic growth rate, and the state budget's capacity. A new salary scale system will be established and issued based on job positions, titles, and leadership positions to replace the current salary scale system.

However, due to the impact of Covid-19, the implementation time for the salary policy reform for officials and public employees, including the salary increase plan, has been postponed to July 1, 2022, instead of 2021 as initially planned.

<< We invite our customers and members to read more in the article Teacher salaries will not increase according to the plan from 2021.

Le Vy

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