KUCHING, May 24 — The number of teachers opting for early retirement in Sarawak has been increasing but the total figure of 490 for the last three years represents less than one per cent of those serving in the state, the Sarawak State Assembly was told today.
Sarawak Minister of Education, Innovation and Talent Development Datuk Roland Sagah Wee Inn said 138 teachers opted for early retirement in 2019, followed by 164 in 2020 and 188 last year.
“The main reasons for their early retirement are health, been in teaching for more than 30 years and decided to move on to other areas, and wanting to focus on family,” he said in his winding-up speech for the motion of thanks on the Sarawak Yang Dipertua Negeri’s opening address.
Sagah said Sarawak was concerned about the issue of teacher shortage but the state government’s hands are tied because education, including hiring and transfer of teachers, comes under the purview of the federal government.
He said the state government had put up several recommendations and proposals to the Ministry of Education (MOE) to address the issue.
“We are glad that some of these proposals have been taken up by MOE. For example, the one-off teachers’ recruitment exercise in 2021, where 2,393 teachers were recruited for Sarawak, of whom 766 are Sarawakians,” he added.
— Bernama
