The teachers and staff of the Bacolod City National High School (BCNHS) held an activity on February 26 inside their school to support the national call of teachers to raise the salary of the sector to ₱55,000. The BCNHS Faculty and Staff Union (FASU) spearheaded the activity.

During their flag-raising ceremony, the teachers lined-up to form “50K” representing their call for salary increases. They asserted that it is only fair to give teachers a salary increase in the face of rising prices and bills. They also called for increasing the salary of non-teaching personnel to ₱33,000.

BCNHS FASU President Marilyn Lecciones joined the activity. BCNHS Principal and Bacolod City Public School Teacher’s Federation (BCPSTF) President Mr. Richard M. Gelangre also attended the gathering.

On February 22, the BCPSTF together with the Alliance of Concerned Teachers (ACT) announced that teachers in Bacolod City will join protests on March 8, International Women’s Day, to call for a salary increase.

In an interview on local radio in Bacolod City, Mr. Gelangre said that the current ₱27,000 teachers’ salary seem big, but in reality, deductions are huge and teachers have a lot to spend on. He said public school teachers take home only about ₱5,000 for their families. As a result, they struggle with debt.

Teachers will march with other democratic sectors on March 8 from Rizal Park to the Fountain of Justice in Bacolod City.