STU suggests free flight tickets to hometown for teachers
SIBU: Sarawak Teachers’ Union (STU) has suggested giving free air-tickets to teachers who are serving away from their hometown in Sarawak.
“For example, a teacher from Miri who is serving in Belaga or a teacher from Kuching serving in the interior of Baram or a teacher from Limbang serving in Kuching.
“As Sarawak is a big state I’m sure this can be considered and this is also applicable to Sabahans and West Malaysians too,” STU president Jisin Nyud said yesterday.
He believed this is among better solutions to deal with shortage of teachers in schools in the interior of Sarawak.
Jisin was commenting on Deputy Education Minister Teo Nie Ching’s recent statement that the Education Ministry had set up a special committee to study ways to tackle the shortage of teachers in several states especially Johor, Selangor, Sabah and Sarawak.
Teo reportedly said among the factors leading to the shortage of teachers in these four states were the high cost of living and the locations of the schools in interior areas.
The deputy minister was also quoted as saying that the problem of lack of teachers was not only in urban areas like Johor and Selangor but also in interior areas like Sabah and Sarawak, and the ministry had taken steps to resolve it, adding it was still under control but they needed to find a quick solution, and one of the things they were considering was increasing the allowance to attract more teachers to the affected areas.
Jisin assured the ministry of STU’s support on the setting up of a special committee to study ways to tackle the shortage of teachers in several states especially Johor, Selangor, Sabah and Sarawak.
He agreed that some of the factors leading to the shortage of teachers in these four states are the high cost of living and the location of the schools in interior areas.
“We need to find a better solution. One of the things we are considering is increasing the allowance so as to attract more teachers to the affected areas, particularly the rural and the interior part of Sarawak where teachers have to face higher cost of living.
Meanwhile, Sarawak Bumiputera Teachers Union ( KGBS) president Ahmad Malie stressed that the selection of candidates for teaching courses in any Teachers’ Training Institutes’ ( IPG) in the country especially for Sarawakians and Sabahans should also be looked into.
Ahmad added: “In this situation, the retention of IPGs functions especially IPG Campus Sarawak, Miri and IPG Campus Rajang, Bintangor is very relevant.”