Education Minister Dr. Susil Premjayantha said in Parliament yesterday (24) that he has instructed the Ministry Secretary to inquire about the letter sent by a Senior Assistant Secretary of the Education Ministry regarding the salary disparity problem of teachers and principals in government schools. He said that an official cannot conduct inquiries regarding matters of policy.
The Minister said this while replying to an oral question raised by Opposition Leader Sajith Premadasa regarding the issue of a Senior Assistant Secretary of the Education Ministry sending a letter on April 18 after the teachers and principals of government schools resorted to trade union action on March 28 regarding the salary disparity issue.
The Education Minister pointed out that still there are salary disparity issues to be solved. The Minister further pointed out that there are discrepancies in the four services of Principal, Education Administration, Teacher Counselling and Teacher Educator along with the teacher rank and the committee reports have been sent to the Public Administration Ministry in this regard. Accordingly, the Minister said that the Cabinet paper will be forwarded in the future.
Ishara Mudugamuwa