Ho Tuan Anh, headmaster of Quynh Phuong Secondary School in Hoang Mai Town of Nghe An province, said the total income of teachers, not including extra income from private tutoring classes, is the combination of salary (minimum wage for education sector x coefficient) + seniority allowance (number of years at work) + professional allowance (30 percent) + position allowance (if any) + allowance for excess teaching hours.

The formula to calculate teachers’ income is nearly the same as the one applied throughout the country. The only difference is professional allowances, which depend on the places where teachers work. The allowance is 30 percent for teachers working in areas with favorable conditions, and 70 percent for those working in difficult areas.

Teachers can get additional income if they give extra lessons at the school. However, only mathematics, literature and English teachers have this kind of income, and their extra income is tens of million of dong a year.

“At my school, the lowest income is VND9 million, and the highest VND22 million a month,” he said.

Nguyen Cao Cuong, headmaster of Thai Thinh Secondary School in Dong Da district in Hanoi said the same formula is applied at his school.

A newly graduated teacher has a coefficient of 2.34, so the income = 2.34 x 2,340,000 + 30% x 2.34 x 2,340,000= 7,118,280 dong.

A teacher with 10 years in service length and 10-year social insurance premiums has the coefficient of 3.33, professional allowance 30 percent, and seniority allowance 10 percent, so the income = 3.33 x 2,340,000 + 30% x 3.33 x 2,340,000 + 10% x 3.33 x 2,340,000 = 10,909,080 dong.

As such, after paying social insurance, health insurance and other expense items, teachers of his school have incomes ranging from VND6.4 million to VND19.9 million. However, only teachers with high seniority can receive VND20 million.

Meanwhile, a headmaster of a secondary school in Hoai Duc district said he is the highest income earner of the school. With 33 years of working, he gets VND21 million a month. 

“In general, teachers’ lives are still difficult,” he said.

A teacher at a well known high school in Hanoi said her income is VND11,231,000, relatively high compared with her colleagues, because she has been working for 15 years. Meanwhile, new graduates receive VND3-4 million. 

The teacher said that private tutoring is the choice of most teachers to improve their living standards.

Thanh Hung