If only it was that simple! You have to take some relevant circumstances into account: A Hungarian civil society without…
Open Letter of a Teacher
A starting teacher wrote this letter to Orbán, which gives an unpleasant picture of the profession in Hungary in the year 2022. There is no further need to comment for me.
Mr Prime Minister!
I know your mother was once a teacher. That’s why I’m writing to you these lines to see if you read and think about it, at least out of respect for your own mother.
In July 2021 my dream, I cherished since I was a child, came true: I finally got my master’s degree in teaching. I became a high school teacher with 6 years of university education (compared to law school for only 5 years).
Sure, now that I’m done, it’s now being shortened to 5 years, but I’m not going to do much with that anymore. Just as every young teacher slips out of the tax credit for those under 25, because by the time they graduate from university, they are already 25 years old. I entered the field with a two-year master’s degree in teaching, two language exams and huge enthusiasm. Of course, I always knew I wouldn’t be rich as a teacher, but I never longed for any kind of luxury, I just wanted a calm, decent life.
When I graduated from college, the black soup came: I had to move out of college. While I had housing for 15 000 Forint a month in the dormitory, including homework, I am now threatened with homelessness as a beginning teacher. Unfortunately, I can’t move back to my parents anymore, as they still live in a one-and-a-half-room apartment with my two sisters with 4 . So I tried to look for a job as a teacher with a service apartment. Unfortunately, it wasn’t even advertised in the neighbouring counties, so I stayed in my hometown, Budapest, but I relocated to an outer district during my dormitory move.
In 2021, the net salary of a beginning teacher with a master’s degree will be 145 000 Ft, to which is added a supplement of 15 000, so 160 000 will be taken home.
From this I was able to solve the housing situation by moving in with roommates for 55 000 + overhead costs (for a total of about 75 000). But grown-up, working people usually don’t move in with strangers anymore, so I only found college roommates. It was about 3-4 days a week when the party went at least until 2 in the morning, in vain I asked them to be a little quieter because I had to leave at 6:30 to be in school by 7:30.
As soon as the headmaster remarked that I shouldn’t walk around like a living dead, I had to switch: I found a hole in a mouldy, basement, 17-square-foot apartment, for 70 000 a month. In Budapest, this is an almost unbelievably good price, as most one-room studios start at 110 000, but my apartment has a huge disadvantage: there is no heating in the basement, only electricity, which now in the winter presses the utility costs up to be around 50 000 a month, while there are only 19-20 degrees in the room.
So out of my 160 000 salary, 120 000 will be taken away by housing. I have to make a living from the remaining 40 000: to eat, to get dressed, to take public transport, to buy shower gel / toothpaste / medicine / everything else. I will tell you what it is like to live as a beginning teacher in Hungary today: My hair dryer has been broken for more than a month, but I can’t buy a new one. Before Christmas, I had to talk to my acquaintances, my family, so that nothing would be prepared for me, because now I am not in a position to buy a gift for anyone. I live almost exclusively on pure pasta or rice, because I don’t run for anything else, no matter how much I save. It has happened that I brought a toilet paper from the teacher’s toilet because I didn’t have the money to take it home. My only boots look like a homeless’ ones, but again I don’t have the money. There was a time when I just went to an exhibition opening, just to have finally a meal there. If there were an unexpected bigger expense in my life right now (the bigger one means more than 20 thousand HUF in my case), I wouldn’t be able to solve it. Or I would end-up in the streets.
In addition to all this, I should give me a balanced picture of a teacher at school. When every minute of my life dreads how I can survive without money. When I have an hour from 7:45 a.m., I am usually in school until 2:05 p.m. As a beginner, there is no other way, because there are no proven, tried and tested tasks yet, everything has to be done first. It is not just the lessons that a teacher’s life consists of: There are preparations for lessons, compilation of papers, correction of papers, lots of administration, parenting meetings, reception hours, corridor services, lots of replacement hours (which is unpaid, 6 times a week, up to 30 times a month,) accompanying children to programs outside of working hours, compiling and teaching school programs (outside of working hours, of course). Once I wrote it down during a week, I had spent 57 hours it in my school and school related tasks in that week. I get paid 160 000 a month for 57 hours a week. This is a nets hourly wage of 701 Forint.
As a teacher, we get no help. No clothes money, no year-end rewards, no cafeteria, no extra rewards in the world. There is no social safety net under me, no matter how hard I work with my heart and soul, I am balancing on the edge of homelessness.
In grocery stores, what was 500 Ft last year is now 700 Ft. From 2022 almost everyone will have a 20 % increase in salaries. Except for teachers, we get a 10 % allowance increase.… Why is my job as a high school teacher worth so little? A nursery worker with the same level of education receives 100 000 Ft more for his work. Why? Why is a railroad / bus driver / office worker who also works for the state worth so much more than teachers?
Mr Prime Minister! Your mother also worked as an educator. If your mother were a young teacher now, would you regret paying her a decent living?
Published on the facebook account of PDSZ, the Democratic Trade Union of Teachers ►HU
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What a horrible situation this guy and his colleagues are in!
People working for us in the house get 2000 HUF/hour – and they didn’t have to go to school and study for such a long time.
It’s almost unbelievable.
But we all know that Fidesz doesn’t need and doesn’t want educated people because it’s much easier to control the stupid uneducated bunko paraszt.
And Fideszniks don’t care because their own young ones go to private schools where the teachers also make more money.
Wolfi, at least now someone explained to you why there is no toilet paper left in the hospitals. I really wonder that you did not know these numbers.
“In grocery stores, what was 500 Ft last year is now 700 Ft.” That’s a 40% increase. If we are honest, this is exactly Orban’s policy, it always has been. Hungary’s workers have to be cheap so that a sack of potatoes represents something. As a threat of even worse living conditions, there are the Roma and homeless. The question of “paying her a decent living” could be discussed in a school lesson. I summarize once the last 12 years … the question to Orban for a decent life is infinitely naive.
Infinitely naive or a middle of style to reach the broadest possible public? Orbán as caring son targets even FIDESZ voters, while the trade union used this open letter to call for strike as well. Welcome to Hungarian autocracy!
Keyword Stylistic “As a teacher, we get no help.” … “I am balancing on the edge of homelessness.” … Is it about the living, no question. Is it about the freedom to live, no. The focus is the narrator as if he were isolated in society. Seen that way, naivety would be an excuse? Besides, I have always had the feeling that there is no oxygen for education in Hungary, but that’s just me.
Stylistically, I would have written a parable to a homeless person. Just as many would have understood it, but I see his problem somewhere else. Would he be satisfied with 100 000Ft. more per month?
We all have know that the pay situation for teachers in Hungary is terrible and the limitations placed on teachers unions and others to strike (by Article 4(3) of the Act on Strikes, as amended in 2010 by the Fidesz government) obviously keeps those wages low.Teachers may be covered by a provision of the law or they may not be. It is beyond my understanding and one of my family members is a member of a teachers union in Esztergom believes even though they have the formal right to strike in practice they do not.
Eva based on posts for a while back in 2016 seemed to believe at least some of the leadership of the PSZ (Pedagógusok Szakszervezete) (particularly Mrs. István Galló) in Hungary were willing to take on Fidesz on critical issue with striking potentially in violation of the law. As we all recall a massive demonstration in Budapest took place and then team Orban created the Public Education Round Table reducing this militancy on the part of PSZ. Hungary’s second teachers’ trade union, the Teachers’ Democratic Trade Union then led by László Mendrey, calle for a boycott of the educational roundtable until every interested and affected party was invited, calling it a “political trick” to try to divide teachers. It was indeed a trick that worked and even László Mendrey had to cave in to Fidesz. Ultimately they backed off over fear of their unions being essentially decertified and accepted what was being offered by team Orban.
Another strike was attempted led by a school administrator named István Pukli from Teleki Blanka Academic High School, one of the most outspoken of the leaders of the “I would teach” movement. It pretty much failed and Pukli, was accused by Fidesz deputy chairman Szilárd Németh of “behaving like a trained Bolshevik agent.” Pukli abandoned the I would teach movement being intimidated by Fidesz, and gave up his position at Teleki Blanka Academic High School. This article out of Poland looked at the big picture of Hungarian teachers attempt to make schools better and for teachers to get paid more going beyond their own unions’ compromises that ultimately did not work https://politicalcritique.org/cee/hungary/2017/hungary-political-movement-education/.
Really its a very depressing story when you look back at it. I feel bad for the teacher who wrote that letter and for my cousin in Esztergom who is also teaching in a public school, they get paid pretty badly unless they become administrators, but then you have to try to keep the under funded schools working at it can keep you up at night. My cousin gave up her administrative position to go back to classroom instruction and lives with her low pay.
Strikes are not forbidden, but hardly possible through legal limitations. If you follow the link to the trade union I provided you would find more information about their attempt. The letter is used to explain their wish as well.
Istvan, thanks for this info!
Yes, it’s an ugly situation for teachers. However …
Just a few days ago we heard from our neighbour that one of her sons and his wife, both teachers at a gymnasium, will go on a nice holiday – how could they afford this?
Well they do a lot of extra hours which are paid for by the parents of students who need help – and of course only for parents who can afford these private lessons.
Wolfi
This one couple who would “go on a nice holiday” doesn’t mean anything – it could be not so “nice”, could be savings, could be he,p from children, sale of a property, etc. The stats are telling and it’s a grim story.
You have also to take into account the social humiliation of these teachers exploited to the point of walking like zombies and looking like homeless. Even if we discard the extremes teachers are still at the bottom of the social order (primarily due to their low pay). Duly the education results got worse in the last 10 years.
Observer, this was meant as an example of what it takes to have a decent life as a teacher – either make some money on the side or have another source. So we totally agree – for a regular teacher it’s hell.
Magyarország visszafelé megy! Nem előre!
Hungary is going backwards! Not forwards!
Orbán on his facebook account again published a government’s policy! To fight inflation he decided in good communist traditions of state made prices to limit food prices to the price-level of last October. No, not all, just 6 products: granulated sugar, fine wheat flour, sunflower cooking oil, pork leg, chicken breast, and 2.8 % cow’s milk. Valid from February 1st. We should wait with eating until next month and limit our consumption to baked sweet pork legs in milk soup bound with flour one day and the other day the same with chicken breast. Tasty and healthy! I don’t know, but guess that the shops will have to pay for the difference, since petrol stations and banks had to pay for these measures.
Even Poland doesn’t do it that bad: Poland cuts VAT on food instead.
My wife just read about these price reductions and got really angry!
It will mean for stores to survive to raise other prices even more and might drive smaller stores into bankruptcy. A few months ago an ABC here closed its doors forever,more will follow.
She also said that with these basic ingredients you couldn’t do healthy cooking, just delivering more calories which would make Hungarians even more obese.
Afaik Hungary is already the EU country with the highest percentage of obese people – and we see this every time we go shopping.
On those price reductions again:
Elections, elections!
said my wife and got even angrier this morning when reading the news – not the North Korean State Media of course.
If a majority of Hungarians should really be that stupid not to understand what’s going on here and that they of course will have to pay elsewhere for this then it’s good night for Hungarian democracy.
I’ll travel to Germany soon (so don’t wonder if I’m not active for a few days here) and already imagining what my friends there will say – whether they will be sad for the poor Hungarians or start laughing hysterically …
Now every sane person outside Hungary will realize what kind of system O1G has built – but of course most people know this already.
Completely off topic but in the news relating to Hungary being a NATO member. This MTI article https://magyarnemzet.hu/kulfold/2022/01/oroszorszag-nem-kivan-senkit-fenyegetni presents the Russian position that it can stage new military maneuvers in Voronezh, Belgorod, Bryansk and Smolensk regions. That they pose no threat to NATO or Ukraine. Dmitry Pesov a spokesperson for Putin according to MTI said – NATO is not an institution for development. NATO is an instrument of confrontation. This alliance was invented as such, designed as such, implemented as such, so it develops and works.
NATO has offered Russia limits on where NATO can stage maneuvers relative to the borders of Russia and the number of troops involved in return for Russia doing the same. These new Russian maneuvers appear to be Putin’s response to that offer from NATO, but team Putin denies that too. Now its interesting that MTI which is controlled by Orban’s operatives in this article makes no critical comments about this development since Hungary is still part of NATO which is today formally meeting with the Russians. Any reasonable reading of this MTI report would lead readers to believe Hungary is in agreement with Russia on its stance regarding NATO. I suspect the CIA analysts assigned to read this stuff every day have read this too, summarized it and passed it on up the command chain including to the State Department.
What are the chances this teacher will resettle in Western Europe and do any work for a much higher standard of living?
I am not sure if this teacher could find a job as a qualified teacher, as he expresses his preferences for being a teacher, in Western Europe (I am talking about the EU). I am afraid his qualification for teacher would not be recognized by any western EU country.
This teacher is in a catch 22 situation, if he wants to earn a “normal” salary he has to go to the Aldi or Lidl to work there. (The weird thing here is, that for example Lidl has been criticised a lot in Germany for the work circumstances, so only Lidl in Hungary will work out fine for this teacher). If he wants to remain a teacher, he will be poor as long as the Viktor has anything to decide here. For material reasons, this teacher should forget about his ideals of teaching in public schools and try to teach privately, and make a business out of that. Appealing to the Viktor or the fake history Kassler is only a symbolic attempt.
OT
Even Orbàn’s pet projects suffer from the ineptitude of his bumbling regime: the European Handball Championship hosted jointly by Hu and Slovakia was marred before it started by complaints from the French and Serbian teams, followed by the Spanish and others. They complained primarily about being exposed to Covid contagion by the unmasked guests of their hotels and by the generally very lax rules and protection measures.
Those teams in preparation for the championship had to stay in isolated “bubbles” environments during the holidays only to face the very different Hu reality. Obviously an eventual Covid case would take the player and those in close contact into isolation thus weakening or disabling the team.
Somehow it didn’t come to the Hu organizer’s mind to designate some hotels to be used exclusively by the participants in a more secure environment.
The Hu team, on the other hand, lives and trains in such an environment and if some competitors lose players or can’t field their teams, well …God’s will…
The Hu Handball Federation immediately (without any investigation or negotiation with the visiting teams) released a statement of bewilderment and incomprehension – why would someone complain. when they’ve done a perfect job. (It’s never a Hun’s fault, remember?)
Thank you Istvan for this important post. Very sad to read about this situation.
I still remember my own experiences in Milwaukee, Wisconsin-similar- to this teacher, while in my early 20s. I also took home toilet paper (and canned peaches) from my place of work as my salary was too low. I was still completing my MS in Psychology and managing a children’s program. Every child in the program came from families earning far more than myself.