Bulgarian Teachers with 2nd Lowest Salaries in EU

Bulgarian teachers are at the bottom of Europe by their salaries, according to an EC report. File photo

Teachers' salaries in Bulgaria are the second lowest in Europe, according to the Teachers' and School Heads' Salaries and Allowances in Europe 2011/12 report, published Friday by the European Commission to coincide with World Teachers' Day.

Only teachers in Romania have salaries that are lower than the ones of their Bulgarian colleagues.

According to data about the minimum and maximum annual statutory gross salaries of full-time fully qualified teachers in public schools and average actual annual gross salaries of this category of teachers, in Euro Purchasing power standard (EURO PPS) (2011/12), the average actual salary of school teachers in Bulgaria is EUR 10 405, while the one in neighboring Romania is EUR 9 614. Teachers in Luxembourg have the highest pay of EUR 75 741.

Teachers in Greece make three times more than those in Bulgaria, in Portugal – more than three times, and in Spain – more than four times.

The report notes that sixteen European countries have reduced or frozen teachers' salaries in response to the economic downturn while those in Bulgaria, Cyprus, Estonia, France, Hungary, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, United Kingdom, Croatia and Liechtenstein have fallen slightly or stayed the same.

Teachers in Ireland, Greece, Spain, Portugal and Slovenia are the worst affected by budget restrictions and austerity measures.

"Teachers play a vital role in the lives of children and, as everyone knows, can make all the difference to their future. Teachers' remuneration and working conditions should be a top priority in order to attract and retain the best in the profession. But attracting the best teachers is not just about pay: it is imperative that classrooms are well-equipped and that teachers have a proper say on modernizing curricula and education reforms," Androulla Vassiliou, Commissioner for Education, Culture, Multilingualism and Youth, is quoted saying.

The EC annual report contains a comparative overview of salaries in 32 European countries (EU Member States, Norway, Iceland, Liechtenstein, Croatia and Turkey). It covers full-time, fully qualified teachers and school heads at pre-primary, primary, lower secondary and upper secondary education levels.

The report is compiled for the European Commission by the Eurydice network, which provides analyses and information on European education systems and policies. The network consists of 38 national units based in the 34 countries which participate in the EU's Lifelong Learning Program (EU Member States, Croatia, Serbia, Iceland, Liechtenstein, Norway, Switzerland and Turkey). Serbia and Switzerland did not take part in the report.

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