Teachers complain over withdrawn meal allowances

Teachers in Chipata have complained over a decision by their supervisors to stop paying them meal allowances.
Zambia National Union of Teachers, ZNUT Chipata District Chairperson Isaac Ngoma says it is regrettable that some teachers that go out of their stations on duty are being denied meal allowances.
Mr Ngoma says that supervisors are refusing to pay the allowances on the pretext that they are enforcing a circular of cost saving measures.
He says this is unfair because some of the teachers spend more than 8 hours from their area of operation.
Mr Ngoma says the explanations from some supervisors that teachers can only draw meal allowances if they go to work out of the district is unacceptable.
He has charged that this state of affairs has left some teachers demotivated with some resorting to remaining in their stations to teach than work out of their stations.
Mr Ngoma has called on the authorities to correctly interpret the contents of the circular to ensure that teachers get what is due to them as opposed to having them starve when they are sent out of their stations.
He says it is ironical that some supervisors would release money for foodstuffs for the pupils who go out of their schools for education programmes but deny a teacher who is accompanying the team.