Teachers seek regular jobs

Tribune News Service

Mohali, February 19

Demanding regularisation of their services, members of the 5178 Master Cadre Union, Punjab, staged a protest in front of the Punjab School Education Board (PSEB) office, Phase VIII, here today. 

They raised slogans against the government.

Teachers said they were recruited in 2014 on the condition that they would be regularised at full scale after the completion of their contract period of three years.

Jaswinder Aujla, a senior member of the union, said, “In November 2017, the contract period was over. But instead of regularising our jobs, the government wants to extend the contract for another three years with a meagre pay raise.”

Teachers banged utensils — pots and pans — as a symbolic protest. A large number of police personal were deployed on the occasion. The protest continued till the evening and the road towards FORTIS was blocked.

Harpreet Singh, a teacher, said some teachers in Kapurthala had not been paid for three months.

According to sources, members of union met government officials late in the evening and the government agreed to form a three-member committee to look into the demands of teachers. The Education Secretary will be a part of the three-member committe.  

Sources said a meeting in this regard to be held on March 1.