Govt to double house rent, medical allowances for MPO teachers

The Ministry of Education has sent a proposal to the Finance Ministry to increase the house rent and medical allowances for MPO-affiliated teachers, amid ongoing protests demanding the nationalisation of private educational institutions.

Under the proposal, the monthly house rent allowance, currently Tk 1,000, would be raised by Tk 1,000, bringing it to Tk 2,000. 

Similarly, the medical allowance would be doubled from Tk 500 to Tk 1,000.

The proposal was disclosed during a meeting on Wednesday, August 14, between education ministry officials and leaders of the MPO-affiliated Education Nationalisation Alliance, confirmed by several teacher leaders and a ministry official present at the discussion.

However, the proposed increase has been met with dissatisfaction. MPO teachers argue that the fixed-amount allowance does not reflect actual living costs and fails to address systemic inequities.

They are demanding that house rent be calculated as a percentage of basic salary, in line with the rules for government employees. Currently, government staff in the Dhaka metropolitan area receive 50-65% of their basic pay as house rent, 40-60% in district towns, and 35-55% elsewhere.

“Why should we be treated differently?” asked one teacher leader. “We perform the same duties, yet we’re denied the same benefits. A flat-rate allowance doesn’t solve the problem.”

The Monthly Pay Order (MPO) scheme is a government initiative that provides partial salary and benefit support to teachers and staff in private educational institutions. While it offers financial stability, significant disparities in pay, job security, and entitlements between MPO and full government employees remain a major point of contention.

According to the 2023 report by the Bangladesh Bureau of Educational Information and Statistics (BANBEIS), there are currently 26,447 MPO-affiliated institutions across the country, employing around 380,000 teachers and 177,000 non-teaching staff.

As the interim government reviews the proposal, teachers warn that without meaningful structural reform, including full nationalisation or equitable benefit parity, their agitation will continue.