DR1 Daily News - Dominican Republic

The Dominican Teachers Association (APD) managed to get a substantial 8% pay increase from the Ministry of Education, which President Luis Abinader later raised to 10%, just last week. This new pay hike has been well criticized by several entities, in particular the Business Action for Education, Educa, which is a business entity that oversees education in the Dominican Republic.

Maria Waleska Alvarez, the current president of the group, told reporters that any pay increase for teachers should be tied to the results of their work, that is to say, that the children can read, write and do arithmetic. Alvarez noted that the 10% pay increase means an additional RD$11 billion to the national budget, costing each household about RD$2,500 more in taxes paid.

Alvarez said that the increase does not contemplate any additional commitment for academic excellence on the part of...