Director of the province’s Education and Training Department Nguyễn Minh Luân told media at a press briefing that the dismissal would follow a roadmap and not be carried out en masse as reported earlier.— Photo vov.vn

CÀ MAU — Director of the province’s Education and Training Department Nguyễn Minh Luân told media at a press briefing that the dismissal would follow a roadmap and not be carried out en masse as reported earlier.

Luân also said some of the laid-off teachers would be re-hired because the province still lacked qualified teachers.

It was reported that more than 1,400 teachers in Mekong Delta province of Cà Mau were facing dismissal as the province wants to reduce the number of branches of schools, according to local education authority.

The announcement of dismissal plans caused anxiety amongst teachers as they learned they were to be laid off mere weeks before the new school year begins. 

However, this was part of a province’s scheme carried out since May 2018 aiming to reduce the number of schools’ branches from current 606 branches to 246 in the next three years.

Chairman of the province People’s Committee Nguyễn Tiến Hải said that previously, branches of schools were built to help relieve parents’ burdens in sending their children to school due to improper roads and a dense canal system in the province.

“As local transport system is improved, school branches should be removed,” he said, adding that the removal would also help reduce staff and therefore, public spending on them.

Since May, local authorities have found more than 1,400 teachers were employed unlawfully as their short-term contracts were signed by school managers or district education divisions without approval from the provincial education department and province People’s Committee.

Those teachers make up the majority subject to dismissal.

Director of the province’s Finance Department Đoàn Quốc Khởi said that according to Education and Training Ministry regulations, there should be a maximum 35 students in a class in primary school and 45 students per class in secondary schools and high schools but in parts of Cà Mau, schools deliberately reduced the number of students per class and as a result they needed more teachers.

With the number of students in the province, it needed about 12,000 teachers but in fact, employed more than 13,000.

Khởi said that for years, the province’s budget struggled to pay teachers. — VNS