Teachers march and demand a salary increase in Venezuela

Thousands of public sector teachers from Venezuela They took to the streets of Caracas and other Venezuelan cities on Monday to demand better working conditions and decent wages from the government of President Nicolás Maduro at a time when the majority cannot meet their basic needs.

The teachers, workers and administrative employees of primary and secondary schools denounced that the low salaries in bolivars are incompatible with the high prices fixed in dollars. Added to this scenario is inflation that condemns millions to live in poverty.

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The Venezuelan Finance Observatory, a private organization run by opposition lawmakers, estimated that annual inflation reached 306% last year and 37% in December, the highest rate in the past 20 months.

The Central Bank of Venezuelawhich usually reports official figures with a delay of up to a year, published in October that accumulated inflation in the first 10 months of 2022 had been 127.8% without giving other details.

In Caracas, teachers could not reach the doors of the Ministry of Education, where platforms and fences were placed that blocked the passage of protesters who chanted slogans such as “And no, and I don’t want to leave; I want a decent salary to stay in my country”. Others carried banners that read “I love being a teacher, but hungry love doesn’t last.”

The minimum wage set in March 2022 of 130 bolivars per month was then equivalent to about 30 dollars, but is currently 6.68 dollars due to the devaluation of the local currency. In practice, the minimum wage is barely enough to buy a kilo of chicken a month.

“If things continue like this, there will come a time when we won’t even be able to go to school to work”commented Professor José Pérez, president of the Sitraenseñanza union, noting that the cost of a ticket on public transport ranges between 4 and 5 bolivars.

In recent years, low salaries have also led to the desertion of teachers, who are forced to dedicate themselves to other tasks to increase their income. According to figures from the Venezuelan Federation of Teachers, more than 50% of the 370,000 active teachers have abandoned schools since 2017. Many of them are among the more than seven million Venezuelans who have emigrated to other countries.

Source: Elcomercio

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I am Jack Morton and I work in 24 News Recorder. I mostly cover world news and I have also authored 24 news recorder. I find this work highly interesting and it allows me to keep up with current events happening around the world.