More than 700 former teachers of state-run kindergartens in Yunnan staged a sit-in protest in front of the provincial government building on 10 May, demanding pension payments on a par with primary and secondary school teachers and which meet the remuneration standard for civil servants.
One retired teacher who took part in the demonstration told China Labour Bulletin that they had been fighting for proper pensions for two years. Another retired teacher said representatives of retired teachers of state-owned kindergartens in other provinces also took part in the demonstration. She also said that she would receive an additional 300 or 400 yuan more each month if the Teachers Law were properly implemented.
An official of the Yunnan Provincial Petition Office, who refused to give his name, first denied there had been a demonstration by retired teachers, but he later said that he could not answer any media enquiries about the petition, according to the regulations of the provincial government.
The chairman of the education trade union of Yunnan Province also said he had to seek approval from "related departments" before he could do any interviews with the media.
An official of the provincial education department said that they had sent people to the scene of the demonstration, but he said he was not sure how the problem could be solved.
11 May 2006