Ganjar Wants Teacher Salary Of IDR 30 Million, Observer: Wages In Indonesia Are Low, The Increase Is Gradually

Central Java Governor Ganjar Pranowo together with the Director General of Teachers and Education Personnel, Ministry of Research and Technology Nunuk Suryani, Monday 21 August (Ist)

JAKARTA - The presidential candidate from the PDI-P, Ganjar Pranowo hopes that teachers can earn a salary of up to IDR 30 million each month. Is it possible?

As we all know, teachers are pillars of the education of the nation's children. The role of the hero of the honor of service cannot be separated from the success of education. Furthermore, the success of education will provide benefits to the progress of the country. Without a teacher, it is impossible to produce quality human resources.

Although the existence of teachers is a determinant in education, the award received is still very low. This can be seen from the amount of income of a teacher in Indonesia. Even honorary teachers or those who work in remote areas do not get a decent income. There are still teachers who are even paid far below the minimum wage in their area.

While leading Central Java, Ganjar has also tried to improve the welfare of teachers. He equalizes the teacher's salary rate with the applicable minimum wage. At least teachers can cover their monthly minimum needs and are not entangled with other problems such as online loans.

Moreover, the salaries of teachers in Indonesia are still low. Even when compared to other countries in the region such as the Philippines, Thailand and Malaysia. Even when compared to Singapore, which is a developed country, the salaries of teachers in Indonesia are 20 times lower.

Public policy observer Center of Youth and Population Center (CYPR) Boedi Rheza said that the idea of Ganjar Pranowo was correct. With the improvement of welfare, teachers can concentrate on providing teaching and education to students.

Incidents such as teachers who are entangled in online loans (pinjol) which are very burdensome can be minimized. For the record, the party who is caught in illegal loans is the teacher, which according to the OJK reaches 42 percent.

"If you look at the salary level of neighboring teachers, Indonesia is at a low level. The teacher's salary can be increased gradually in the next few years," he said, Saturday, September 9.

The increase in salary rates can be done by adjusting the minimum wage rate in each region. The increase in salaries can also be done by diverting subsidies such as fuel subsidies.

In addition, it can also be done by increasing the portion of central assistance to the regions through the proportion of education funds. So far, the portion of education funds is also on technical guidance or training in government agencies. If it can be streamlined, for example by optimizing the function of state training institutions, then the proportion of training costs can be diverted to help fund the salaries of teachers.

"With an efficient and appropriate budget allocation, the increase in teacher salaries can be carried out properly and does not burden the central and regional finances," continued Boedi Rheza.

He added that the good initiative carried out by Ganjar Pranowo could be carried out by other regions and was upgraded to national policy.

At least the name of the teacher's salary rate with a minimum wage rate is a good step. On the one hand, the increase can be covered by the region by re-allocate other inefficient education budgets such as training that is mostly carried out in high-cost places," he concluded.