A SENATOR has called on the Second Congressional Commission on Education (EDCOM II) to review the allocation and distribution of 70% of the tuition hike share of academic personnel in private schools, including UST, after a faculty coalition decried its supposed lack of transparency and fairness.
In a letter to senators Sherwin Gatchalian and Alan Peter Cayetano, Sen. Risa Hontiveros said the Council of Teachers and Staff of Colleges and Universities of the Philippines (CoTeSCUP) had raised concerns over the lack of transparency in the fund use, ambiguities in eligibility guidelines, inequitable distribution of tuition increases and lack of regulatory oversight to monitor the tuition hike share policy.
“I respectfully request the Commission’s consideration of this matter to be included in the Standing Committee on Higher Education and Teacher Education Development. A review of these concerns would greatly advance the rights and welfare of our teaching and non-teaching personnel in educational institutions,” Hontiveros said in a letter dated Dec. 4.
The letter was in response to issues raised by CoTeSCUP, a coalition of academic and non-academic personnel unions and associations in private schools, on the implementation of the tuition hike share in their respective institutions.
Last December, UST Faculty Union (USTFU) president Asst. Prof. Emerito Gonzales called for a “legal clarification and intervention” from the Commission on Higher Education (CHED) on the disbursement of the 70% share intended for faculty salaries and benefits, which has been put on hold for three years.
This came a day after UST Rector Fr. Richard Ang, O.P. denied the union’s call for a partial release of its tuition increase share, saying it may expose the University to legal and compliance issues if it is done without a signed agreement.
Under the law, higher education institutions are required to allocate 70% of their tuition increases to the salaries, wages, allowances and other benefits of their academic and non-academic personnel. However, the share “may be provided for in the collective bargaining agreement (CBA),” according to CHED.
In a separate letter addressed to CHED Chairperson Prospero De Vera, III, the CoTeSCUP called for an immediate dialogue between the agency and faculty unions about the ongoing issues on the tuition hike allocation.
“Our members have encountered persistent problems in the allocation and distribution of funds from tuition fee increases, including delays in distribution, lack of transparency in fund utilization, compliance as regard to the rules involving tuition fee consultation, and inadequate regulatory oversight among others,” the letter dated Feb. 17 read.
The concerns were raised by unions from UST, Silliman University, University of San Carlos, Centro Escolar University, San Beda University, San Beda College Alabang, Lyceum University of the Philippines and Ateneo de Manila University.
CoTeSCUP also pointed out that no progress or communication has been made following the establishment of a technical working group tasked to review the CHED Memorandum Order No. 3, Series of 2012, which tackled matters related to tuition hike.
“These issues severely impact the fair treatment of educational staff and compromise the quality of education provided to our students,” the group added.
According to Gonzales, the University implemented tuition increases for academic years 2021 to 2022, 2022 to 2023 and 2023 to 2024. The stalled 70% share amounts to P71,950,191.14; P89,591,708.44; P149,536,931.50, respectively, for those years.
Following numerous rejections of CBA provisions, the UST administration and USTFU members scheduled an assembly to declare a deadlock in January but it kept getting deferred as the majority of the union board members were “unwilling or hesitant” to support the call for such a decision, Gonzales said. F
