The Progressive Teachers Union of Zimbabwe (PTUZ) has reported a disturbing trend of teacher fatalities, with at least 128 members dying monthly due to stress caused by meager salaries and poor working conditions.
According to NewZimbabwe, PTUZ President Takavafira Zhou stated that two teachers die in each of Zimbabwe’s 64 districts every month, resulting in 1,536 annual fatalities.
According to Zhou, poverty and its associated psycho-social effects are driving the high mortality rate among teachers.
He cited a surge in suicides, fatal domestic disputes, and divorces linked to poor salaries.
ALSO READ: Bail ruling for Harare City officials tomorrow
The union attributes this crisis to the erosion of wages following the reintroduction of the Zimbabwean dollar in 2016, which reduced civil servants’ earnings from US$540 to as low as US$100.
Zhou urged the government, Public Service Commission, and relevant authorities to intervene by paying teachers a living wage, warning that President Emmerson Mnangagwa’s administration will be remembered for causing teacher de@ths due to starvation if action is not taken.
However, teachers’ unions disagree on the desired salary amount, with PTUZ advocating for a return to the 2016 salary of US$540 and others, like the Amalgamated Rural Teachers Union, demanding a US$1,000 salary from the current US$300.
