“The Corona period was a major challenge for the entire school system – not just for the school directors. Because we teachers were also on our own, first had to teach ourselves and then the students everything online,” says Petra Zehetner, teacher at the NMS Lochen.
After Education Minister Martin Polaschek (VP) promised a corona bonus of 500 euros for directors of compulsory and federal schools and administrators of general secondary schools (AHS) and vocational middle and high schools (BMHS) on Wednesday, opinions are divided in the school system.
“I honestly have to say: I begrudge our director and also our administrator, because they really did a lot during these times and kept us up to date about changes,” says teacher Ursula Ebner-Kössinger from the BRG Schloss Traunsee. According to NMS teacher Zehetner, it would be fairer if the entire school could benefit from the bonus: “That would also be a nice appreciation for the staff.”
resentment in schools
The approach taken by the Ministry of Education also met with little understanding from the teachers’ unions. “We definitely have no problem with the directors receiving this bonus. That was part of our demands. But it is incomprehensible why the teachers, who also worked a huge amount of work during the pandemic, are left empty-handed,” says Werner Hittenberger, Chairman of the AHS teachers in the Public Service Union (GÖD).
A bonus for teachers does not necessarily have to be of a financial nature. “An additional day off would also be conceivable. But I understand that my colleagues are upset if they get nothing at all,” says Hittenberger.
Dissatisfaction can also be felt among the school directors themselves. “We are very pleased that our work is being recognized, but it’s actually a drop in the ocean,” says Wolfgang Rupprecht, spokesman for the directors of the commercial academies (HAK) in Upper Austria. “At my school, the teachers have not yet expressed their displeasure, but the colleagues have also suffered from the challenges of the corona pandemic and accordingly deserve appreciation.” Especially because the current crisis situation in Ukraine would bring the next challenges to the teacher colleagues.
Education Minister Martin Polaschek justified the restrictions on the bonus with limited budget funds. According to the ministry, there will also be a reward for the teachers, albeit not in financial form. Instead, relief measures for teachers are currently being developed together with the teachers’ union. Above all, the bureaucratic effort for teachers is to be temporarily reduced.
Source: Nachrichten
