Even in pursuing their respective KPIs, school heads must remember that teachers are human beings and should be treated as such, said NUTP Secretary-General Lok Yim Pheng in an interview with FMT.
She said the union had received numerous complaints from teachers alleging ill-treatment by their superiors.
Some have complained about rejection of applications for leave to attend the funerals of relatives. Others have spoken about denial of their right to maternity leave, and still others have complained about being transferred to distant states. There were many other types of complaints, said Lok.
“It’s not right to deny them their basic rights,” she said. “The human touch is essential when dealing with teachers.”
Lok was commenting on a news report about a Tamil school teacher attempting suicide after allegedly enduring months of “torture” and bullying from her headmistress.
Lok advised teachers in similar situations to contact NUTP so that it could help in resolving their problems.
Cuepacs chief Azih Muda also commented on the issue, saying teachers, like many other civil servants, had to deal with a lot of stress even in carrying out their day-to-day duties.
“All this bullying and not caring for their basic human rights just add to the load,” he said.
“If this isn’t addressed and there aren’t regulations put in place to deter such bullying, then more will attempt to take drastic measures.”
He urged the Education Ministry as well as state education departments to put in place several measures to ensure that bullying by school principals would not occur again.
“They should monitor schools from time to time as well as open a hotline through which teachers can make anonymous complaints if they or their colleagues are being bullied by their superiors,” he said.