PHL teachers remain in debt despite high financial literacy, says expert

An expert said most teachers remain financially vulnerable despite having higher financial literacy than the average Filipino, largely due to high levels of debt.

“We compared the financial literacy of teachers vs. the average Filipinos and we really saw that it’s higher and that’s good news,” INNOTECH Centre Director Majah-Leah V. Ravago told BusinessWorld in an interview.

“But what makes us worried is the paradox that despite the high financial literacy levels of teachers, it does not translate into practice,” she added.

Data from the Department of Education (DepEd) in 2019 revealed that public school teachers owe a combined debt of at least P319 billion.

Insufficient salary is one of the causes that leads teachers into debt, according to Ms. Ravago.

“It’s possible that the salary is not enough to cover the basic needs,” she said. “We can’t really blame our teachers who try to look for additional sources of income.”

She added that if teachers cannot “walk the talk,” it could undermine educators’ credibility and effectiveness in teaching students financial literacy.

During the celebration of World Teachers’ Day on Sunday, the Alliance of Concerned Teachers (ACT) Party-list reiterated its calls for a P50,000 minimum wage for a Teacher I position and a P36,000 minimum wage for education support personnel.

“If the government truly values teachers, then it must act—now,” ACT National Chairperson Ruby Bernardo said in a press release.

“Enough of the press releases, enough of the lip service. What’s needed is decisive action, sufficient funding, and respect for the rights of teachers,” she added.

Under Executive Order (EO) No. 64, the salaries of civilian government workers, including public school teachers, are mandated to have a four-tranche salary increase every January from 2024 to 2027.

During the first tranche of the order, the monthly salary of a Teacher I position increased from P27,000 to P28,512, while a Teacher II rose from P27,608 to P30,705, and a Teacher III from P28,798 to P32,870.

For Master Teacher I, the monthly salary increased from P46,725 to P49,015, while Master Teacher II saw adjustments from P51,357 to P53,873, Master Teacher III from P56,767 to P60,157, and Master Teacher IV from P63,997 to P67,005.

Meanwhile, private school educators also had an increase in the Teachers’ Salary Subsidy (TSS) from P18,000 to P24,000 annually beginning in School Year 2025-2026. — Almira Louise S. Martinez