5,000 non-teaching DepEd positions OK’d to reduce teachers’ admin tasks

Metro Manila (CNN Philippines, August 30) — The Department of Budget and Management (DBM) has approved the creation of 5,000 more non-teaching positions in public schools nationwide to help lessen teachers' workload.

The DBM on Wednesday said 3,500 are Administrative Officer (AO) II positions, which are seen to relieve teachers of administrative tasks that support operations.

Meanwhile, 1,500 are Project Development Officer (PDO) I positions, which will complement the AO II and other non-teaching personnel by facilitating the implementation of projects and activities initiated by schools or mandated by the Department of Education (DepEd) Central Office.

"Malaking tulong po ito sa ating mga guro na ma-unload sila sa mga administrative work at maka-focus sa pagtuturo sa mga estudyante [This significantly helps relieve our teachers of administrative work, so they can focus on educating students]. By hiring non-teaching staff, our educators will be able to save a lot of time and effort,” Budget Secretary Pangandaman said in a statement.

AO II and PDO I positions are entitled to a basic salary of ₱27,000, which is salary grade 11.

During his campaign for the 2022 elections, President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. said there’s a need to hire more non-teaching personnel to improve the quality of education in the country.

“We can give teachers more time to prepare their lesson plans. Sometimes, our teachers also serve as the librarian, nurse, we even receive reports that some are also in charge of the canteen,” Marcos said.