Japan Enacts Law to Boost Teacher Allowances

Tokyo, June 11 (Jiji Press)--Japan's parliament enacted a bill Wednesday to raise in stages the so-called adjustment allowances for public school teachers to 10 pct of base salaries from the current 4 pct.

The revised special measures law on teachers' salaries was approved by a majority vote in a plenary meeting of the House of Councillors, the upper chamber of parliament, after its passage through the House of Representatives, the lower chamber, last month.

Following the revision, the adjustment allowances, given instead of overtime pay, will be raised by 1 percentage point annually from next year until it reaches 10 pct in 2031.

The revision also requires all prefectural and municipal boards of education to draw up and publish plans to manage teachers' workloads, in a bid to resolve the worsening problem of long working hours.

During Lower House deliberations, the bill, originally submitted by the government, was amended as agreed among ruling and opposition parties, namely the Liberal Democratic Party, Komeito, the Constitutional Democratic Party of Japan, Nippon Ishin no Kai (Japan Innovation Party) and the Democratic Party for the People.

[Copyright The Jiji Press, Ltd.]