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Minister of Education and Training Phung Xuan Nha has admitted that many teachers in Vietnam receive salary levels which are not commensurate with their efforts.

Nha was interviewed on the sidelines of the National Assembly’s meeting on October 30 about the case of an old teacher in Ha Tinh Province who receives a pension of just VND1.3 million (USD59) per month.

Truong Thi Lan who worked for 37 years as a nursery school teacher, but was recognised as a full-time teacher for just 22 years.

She recently retired and was really shocked to receive the pension of just VND1.3 million.

According to the minister, Lan’s pension is totally in line with the social insurance regulations. He, however, admitted this was too low compared to her devotion to her job.

“How is she supposed to live with such a modest pension? I’ve been thinking about this a lot and have been working with the Ministry of Finance and the Ministry of Internal Affairs to improve the salaries for teachers,” Nha said.

He added that this was not only a problem for Lan but of many other teachers across the country, particularly nursery school teachers.

Under the Central Committee of the Communist Party of Vietnam’s Resolution No. 29-NQ/TW issued on November 4, 2013, the salary payroll scale for teachers must be among the highest level. However, to date, this has yet to be implemented in reality.

“We will submit a proposal on the education law revision to the National Assembly in May next year and hope that this will be passed next October,” Nha noted.

The minister said that the Ministry of Education and Training will try its best to help teachers.

According to Hoang Van Minh, director of Ha Tinh Province’s Social Insurance, at present, around 270 teachers in Ha Tinh Province alone had such low pensions.