First time public school teachers receive Tet bonus
Since the end of 2024, Decree No. 73/2024/ND-CP has been implemented in schools, so in 2024 and 2025, teachers of public schools all have a bonus amount.
In 2024, teachers will only receive bonuses for the last 6 months of the year because Resolution 73 takes effect from July 1, 2024, bonuses are considered according to the solar calendar. In 2025, bonuses are considered for the whole year, so teachers will receive an amount equivalent to "13th month's salary",
In Tuyen Quang, Ms. Hua Thi Toan - a teacher at Le Hong Phong High School, just received a notification of a bonus of 11,670,000 VND for the "Excellently completed task" ranking results. Ms. Toan said that this bonus helps her total income in December increase by one and a half times compared to normal, making spending for her family during Tet more comfortable.
Also in Tuyen Quang, Ms. Hoang Thi Hanh - a teacher at Nguyen Trai Elementary School, Bac Quang commune received a bonus of 11 million VND. For Ms. Hanh, this is a practical encouragement, helping her cover Tet shopping expenses. She assessed this change as very positive, showing the State's concern for the lives of teachers in the highlands.
According to Decree 73, Tet bonuses for 2026 for cadres, civil servants, and public employees are no longer spent in a egalitarian or fixed way with salary coefficients.
The annual bonus fund is specifically determined, not included in the commendation fund according to the Law on Emulation and Commendation, with a level equal to 10% of the total salary fund according to positions, titles, ranks, grades and military ranks of subjects in the payroll of agencies and units, excluding allowances.
Therefore, each unit, each school, and teacher will enjoy different levels of bonuses. Most schools divide into 3 levels for bonuses: Excellent completion of tasks; good completion of tasks; completion of tasks. Usually, the difference is only about 1 - 2 million VND.
Ms. Hua Thi Toan said that bonuses are a joy for teachers, but from a practical perspective on motivation for emulation, the bonus difference between the "Good" and "Good" rankings is not really significant.
If this gap is widened, the resilience and motivation to strive in the teaching staff will be much stronger" - Ms. Toan said.
Unfulfilled joy
Contrary to the joy of full-time teachers, Tet bonuses for contract teachers are difficult. According to regulations, bonuses for this group must be deducted from the "legal revenue source" of the unit and not used from the state budget. This puts schools without service revenue in a difficult situation because there is no bonus fund for contract employees.
Ms. Minh Phuong - a secondary school teacher at a public school in Hanoi said that for 2 years she has not received Tet bonuses according to Decree 73 because she is not eligible for payment. Ms. Phuong is a teacher who signed a contract with the school and is waiting for a civil servant recruitment exam in Hanoi city to participate in the application.
Seeing colleagues discussing Tet bonuses, I can only feel sad. Last year, I was encouraged by the school with a Tet gift basket and 500,000 VND. This year, I don't expect anything more" - Ms. Phuong expressed.
The vice principal of a public secondary school in Tuyen Quang province said that the school has 5 contract teachers but the budget does not provide this bonus.
To solve the problem, the leadership has mobilized full-time teachers in the school to deduct a portion of the bonus to support.
The contribution fund collected 9 million VND, plus the Trade Union fund and personal money of the leaders, the school has shared nearly 2 million VND/permit for each contract teacher" - the female vice principal shared.
She acknowledged that this helps solve the economic problem, helping the team of contract teachers have more income to spend during Tet, but it does not solve the psychological problem. Because when contributing the same effort, one side enjoys the official regime, the other receives a reward in the form of "contribution".
Although affirming that Decree 73 has brought a new position to teachers during Tet, from this reality, the female vice principal expressed her desire that management agencies soon have a mechanism to pour budget directly into contract subjects at public units, so that the joy of Tet is more complete and fair.
