Worry about salary reduction when signing a new contract
A group of contract teachers working at public educational institutions in Cua Lo ward, Nghe An province has just sent a petition to functional agencies, expressing concern about jobs and salaries when implementing contracts according to Decree No. 235/2026/ND-CP.
According to the teachers, they were previously signed contracts by the old Cua Lo Town People's Committee and arranged to work at public schools. Many people have been working for over 10 years, in some cases nearly 20 years, and are still directly teaching classes and performing professional tasks.
During their work, many teachers are paid salaries according to coefficients corresponding to their qualifications, titles, working hours, along with regimes and allowances according to contracts.
Therefore, when switching to signing new contracts directly with schools, what worries them is how the salary will be determined, whether the salary coefficient and the previous years of work will be recorded or not.
When determining salary, teachers request consideration of actual working time, training level, professional title, current salary coefficient, professional experience, work achievements and legal allowances.
Previously, on September 16, 2026, the Nghe An Department of Education and Training issued Official Dispatch No. 3454/SGDĐT-TCCB guiding the implementation of labor contracts according to Decree No. 235/2026/ND-CP in the 2026-2027 school year.
According to the guidance, educational institutions shall sign contracts within the assigned targets. For teachers, contracts should be signed in advance with those who have signed contracts with the old district-level People's Committee and are working at educational institutions.
The contract term according to Decree 235 is a maximum of 9 months, and it ends at the end of the school year. For workers with indefinite-term contracts signed by the old district-level People's Committee in the past, contracts should not be signed for more than 12 months.
The contract must also clearly state that the unit will terminate the contract when there is no longer demand, when the position has newly recruited or transferred public employees, or there are no longer targets assigned by the Provincial People's Committee.
Localities await guidance
On September 19, in an exchange with a reporter from Lao Dong Newspaper, Mr. Phung Duc Nhan - Vice Chairman of Cua Lo Ward People's Committee said that the guidance of the Nghe An Department of Education and Training has not specifically stated the salary level for the group of contract teachers signed by the old district-level People's Committee.
Because the Department's guidance has not specifically stated the salary level for old district contract teachers, we initially directed to leave this part vacant, waiting for instructions from superiors" - Mr. Nhan said.
Representatives of the Organization and Personnel Department, Nghe An Department of Education and Training also said that the determination of salaries for the group of old contract teachers is facing problems.
According to this representative, the resolution is also related to funding sources and procedures for controlling expenditures through the State Treasury.
In addition to the salary issue, the teaching group also proposed to review the team of long-term contract teachers; continue to use them if the job position still needs them; publicize targets and criteria for contract consideration and study a mechanism for transitioning to the civil servant payroll appropriately.
