VietNamNet Bridge – The teachers of some schools in HCM City receive VND6-20
million as Tet bonus. Meanwhile, the concept of “Tet bonus” remains unfamiliar
to the teachers in the highland.
While the teachers of many schools refuse to give answers to the question about
Tet bonus, the teachers of the Tay Thanh High School in HCM City would show off
that they receive VND17-20 million this Tet.
Meanwhile, a Vietnamese person would be considered a “high income earner” if he
has the monthly income of VND10 million or higher.
In principle, teachers receive pay from the State budget, and schools are the
state’s agencies, while the state budget does not have Tet bonus fund for
state’s civil servants. However, some schools still can offer Tet bonuses to
their officers, because they have extra income which does not come from the
state budget.
Some schools earn their money by leasing a part of their area to retailers for
money. Others organize foreign language evening classes or provide any services
they can to make extra money.
The Vo Thi Sau High School has decided to give VND6-17 million to every teacher
as Tet bonus. The levels are different, depending on the service length and the
teachers’ contribution to the school.
The teachers of the Nguyen Thi Dinh High School for the Gifted in Sports in
district 8 receive VND6-10 million each. The teachers of Ta Quang Buu School
VND10-20 million. Meanwhile, the teachers of Nguyen Huu Tho High School not only
receive monthly salaries, but allowances as well, totaling up to VND20 million.
The headmaster of a primary school in district 4 in HCM City said with the
self-control financial mechanism, the school can offer the high Tet bonus of
VND8-10 million to every officer and teacher. The school now leases the premises
to an investor who develops a foreign language center. Since the land is getting
as expensive as gold in big cities, the school can collect a relatively big sum
of money every year, which would be divided to teachers as Tet bonus..
PTD, a high school teacher, said she got nearly VND20 million this Tet. “I feel
happy with the Tet bonus. Though my salary is low, I still big bonuses at the
end of the year,” she said.
A teacher of Nguyen Thi Dinh High School in district 8 happily said she and her
family members would have a merry Tet with the bonus of VND7 million. The sum of
money would be enough for her tickets to the home village and for sweets and
food for Tet celebration.
The teachers in the highland do not have such happy Tet like PTD or the teacher
of Nguyen Thi Dinh School.
“I feel moved to tears when hearing that the teachers in the lowland can receive
tens of millions of dong at the end of the year. We, the teachers in the
highland, never dream of receiving Tet bonus over the last tens of years,” said
Nguyen Dinh Dinh, the oldest teacher of the Hang Tru Secondary School in Son La
province.
Dinh, a literature teacher, is from Hung Yen province, said that it takes him to
days to come to the home village for Tet celebration.
“If I go on motorbike, it would reach home later at 8 pm. But it’s very
dangerous. If I take a coach, I have to go to Bac Yen town first, then take a
bus to Hanoi, from which I would go further to my home village,” Dinh said.
Compiled by Thu Uyen