By Mohammad Amin Mir
In a country where government employment opportunities are scarce and cannot possibly accommodate the flood of qualified youth, the private sector becomes the de facto employment avenue. Among private employers, private educational institutions—particularly schools—form a significant share. Yet, this sector, which claims to be the torchbearer of enlightenment and progress, is riddled with systemic exploitation, especially when it comes to the treatment of its most vital asset: the teacher.
Nowhere is this more evident than in the private schools of Jammu & Kashmir, where thousands of educated and competent individuals are employed under conditions that barely scrape the surface of decency. These schools, which advertise aggressively for the most qualified candidates, demanding advanced degrees and relevant teaching experience, fail spectacularly when it comes to offering fair compensation. The term “salary negotiable”—a common euphemism in recruitment notices—is merely a smokescreen that hides widespread underpayment and financial insecurity.
Prospective teachers are routinely subjected to extended “trial periods,” during which they are paid paltry sums—or in some cases, nothing at all. Their fate hangs on the whims of school managements who offer neither job security nor transparency. This exploitative model forces many teachers to work for salaries as low as Rs 3,000–5,000 per month—less than what an unskilled labourer might earn for basic manual work. Skilled labourers with equipment often take home three to four times that amount. This stark wage disparity is an insult to the teaching profession.
Let us be clear: these teachers are not mere placeholders in classrooms. They are qualified professionals, expected to remain updated with the latest pedagogical practices, adopt new technologies, and cater to a generation of students more demanding and dynamic than ever before. Yet, the economic reality forced upon them is bleak. Teachers are not even in a position to maintain basic professional decorum, let alone invest in teaching aids or digital tools now considered standard.
The COVID-19 pandemic only deepened this crisis. Many private schools conveniently halted salary disbursements for months on end, pushing already vulnerable educators and their families into near destitution. In one reported case, a teacher received only two months’ salary over the course of an entire year. Another went viral on social media after a cab driver offered him a ride; the teacher had no money to pay the fare because he hadn’t been paid by his school for months. These are not isolated incidents—they are a reflection of the larger rot.
Such wage practices make a mockery of the Minimum Wages Act and fly in the face of basic labour rights. Worse, they contradict the very ethos of education. What message are we sending when those who shape the minds of future generations cannot afford basic healthcare, food, or transportation?
Behind every teacher stands a family that has invested years of financial and emotional support in the hope that their educated child will lift them out of hardship. Instead, private school teachers are being driven to despair. They are denied annual increments, performance incentives, job security, and even dignity. Those who dare speak up are swiftly silenced—dismissed without notice or blacklisted in the small, interconnected education community.
This exploitation must end. The government must take immediate and decisive action. The School Education Department and Labour Department should collaborate to establish a regulatory framework that governs hiring practices and salary structures in private schools. A Salary Fixation Committee should be formed to set minimum pay standards, with provisions for annual increments and performance-
All is not bleak, however. Institutions such as the Sir Syed Memorial Educational Institute Doru in South Kashmir are proving that ethical employment practices are not only possible but sustainable. Teachers there are paid respectable salaries—on time and according to official norms. This model must be replicated across the region if private education is to be considered a respectable and viable employment sector for youth.
The time for silence has passed. The plight of private school teachers is no longer a private affair—it is a public issue that questions the credibility of our education system, the morality of our institutions, and the conscience of our society.
Opinions expressed in this article are personal
