Education and Art in Soviet Russia/Document 4

The next Document, No. 4, shows a serious desire on the part of the Soviet Government to provide teachers with ample and more or less uniform compensation. It is only in the light of such authentic documents that prejudiced utterances like those of Dr. Alessandro H. Carasso, in the Sunday Times Magazine Section of March 2, 1919, can be appraised at their true worth.

 

DOCUMENT No. 4

Regulation of the Soviet of People's Commissaires Con-
cerning Standard Remuneration for Teachers' Labors

The Soviet of People's Commissaires decrees:

1. To establish a monthly remuneration for teachers, taking as a standard length of a working day four school hours a day (24 hours or lessons a week).

2. Pending the establishment of a united school system, to preserve remuneration on the basis of yearly hours in secondary schools and wherever such remuneration has hitherto been in practice. In primary and higher schools, seminaries, etc., where monthly payment has been in force, such payments shall continue to be in force for teachers occupied with four hours of school work a day (24 hours a week).

3. Classification of teachers into "regularly appointed," "unattached," "substitutes," etc., is abolished.

4. All teachers (regardless of the particular subject taught, including instructors of music, singing, domestic arts, manual labor and physical exercises) shall receive a remuneration for their school labor on the basis of common standard pay and have equal pension rights.

5. Up to July 1, 1918, the same basis of remuneration shall be applied to lessons given above the prescribed 24 hours' standard.

Note.—An increase of the number of lessons above the standard for individual teachers shall be made in each single case in accordance with a special regulation of the Department of Public Education attached to the local Soviet of Workers' Deputies.

6. Remuneration of the labor of chairmen of pedagogic councils, up to July 1, 1918, shall be adjusted to a remuneration on the basis of 12 yearly hours; vice-ch2irmen and members of administrative and executive committees—six yearly hours; secretaries of pedagogic council and librarians and also clerks and bookkeepers of schools, school superintendents—six yearly hours; assistant school superintendents (ladies' school superintendents not in boarding schools)—18 yearly hours; instructors and ladies’ school superintendents of boarding schools—24 yearly hours.

7. An additional remuneration of labor in preparation of laboratory work shall be made to the extent of 20 per cent. of a yearly hour; remuneration of labor in correcting written tests shall be made to the extent of 10 per cent. of a yearly hour; modern and ancient languages—10 per cent.; Russian language and mathematics—15 per cent.

8. All living quarters, occupied by virtue of service, shall be paid for by the occupants, the amounts being fixed by respective departments of the Soviets of Workmen's, Soldiers' and Peasants' Deputies.

9. The duties of a clerk and bookkeeper at non-boarding schools shall be executed by one person.

Note.—Two positions fused into one shall be allowed to be filled by one person only by special permission from a Department of Public Education attached to the local Soviets of Workmen's, Soldiers' and Peasants' Deputies.

10. The technical personnel shall be remunerated in accordance with a decree of the Soviet of People's Commissaires.

11. The following rule applies to teachers serving above the fixed term: every five years a raise of 600 rubles a year shall be paid to teachers having not less than six yearly hours in all schools, this raise being paid not longer than for four consecutive periods.

12. New standards of payments shall be in force beginning March 1, 1918, two categories being adopted for this purpose.

13. To the first category belong:

(a) all secondary schools, and

(b) all higher grammar, technical, trades, agricultural schools, teachers' seminaries, normal schools and instructors of school and school-administration work.

14. To the second category belong: lower grammar, trades, lower agricultural schools and instructors for kindergarten training.

Note to Articles 13 and 14.

The difference between the aforesaid remuneration scale and that of the actually received salary shall be paid to persons of the teachers' personnel, described in Articles 13 and 14, beginning March 1, and the rest, beginning June 1.

Note 2 to Articles 13 and 14.

Persons leaving service before publication of said decree shall forfeit their pension rights.

15. Monthly salaries to persons of the first category shall range from 600 to 400 rubles at Petrograd and Moscow, and for the second category—from 500 to 300.

16. Present remunerations likewise apply to private schools having the same governmental rights.

Chairman of the Soviet of People's Commissaires, V. Ulianov (Lenin).

Chief Clerk, V. Bonch-Bruevich.

Secretary of, the Soviet of People's Commissaires, N. Gorbunov.