How much will teachers be paid in case of 50% salary increase promised by the Government: explanation
17 September 2025 13:27
The Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine has approved the draft state budget for 2026, which provides for a significant increase in education funding – by 30%, which is an additional UAH 66.5 billion compared to 2025. Particular attention of educators was drawn to the announced 50% increase in teacher salaries. This news sparked a lively discussion in society, as teachers have long been waiting for decent pay for their work. However, how will this increase affect the real income of teachers? Education expert Olena Severenchuk, strategic curator of the Zmist project, explained in detail on her Facebook page what this increase means, how it will work, and what risks it may pose.
“This budget provides 50% for the salaries of those who teach our children. And plus UAH 66.5 billion for education in general, compared to 2025. This is a great victory for the Ministry of Education and all those who lobbied for it,” she said.
Salary increase: what it will look like
According to her, the salary increase will be gradual.
The increase will be in “steps”:
- january-August (8 months): 30% (multiplier 1.3)
- september-December (4 months): 50% (multiplier 1.5).
“The average annual multiplier = (8×1.3 4×1.5) / 12 = 1.3667, which is 36.7% of the average earnings for the year. Not 50% at once,” explained Severenchuk.
Calculation in money
For clarity, she gives a rough calculation: the average monthly salary of a teacher for 2024-2025 in the official guidelines is UAH 15,000. This is 180,000 UAH per year. After the increase, the average annual increase will be approximately UAH 66,000.
Let’s break it down by month:
- January-August (8 months) 30% to 15,000 × 1.3 = 19,500 UAH/month. An increase of 4,500 UAH/month
- September-December (4 months): 50%, 15,000 × 1.5 = 22,500 UAH/month. An increase of 7,500 UAH/month.
“This is already close to the minimum rate stipulated by law, which should be about UAH 24,000. Of course, there are a lot of factors to consider in each case. Once again, this is a rough calculation. And even more importantly, the funding mechanism and the actual formula for allocating funds must be developed by the Ministry of Education and Science by the end of December. Therefore, my calculations should not be taken for granted. This is rather an indicative scenario. In fact, the numbers will be different, of course,” the expert emphasizes.
Risks and challenges
She also warned about the risks: local authorities may reduce surcharges, appealing to the fact that state funding is growing, and then the effect of the increase will be minimized.
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“All the government’s efforts will actually be multiplied by zero. And I really hope for the common sense of the founders of educational institutions, who will not reduce funding and will not take away from teachers the 10, 20, 30% that they are paid now (where this is done in principle),” Severenchuk said.
About international donors and their contribution
There are often suggestions that funds from international donors who support education should be used to pay teachers’ salaries. Olena Severenchuk gives an example: if a conditional donor allocates $20 million (approximately UAH 824 million) for education, and these funds are distributed among 350,000 teachers, each will receive only UAH 196 per month in additional payments.
For comparison, the state increase provides an average increase of 5,500 UAH/month.
This demonstrates how significant public investment in education is compared to donor contributions.
Cautious optimism and critical thinking
The expert calls for cautious optimism and critical thinking. Although raising salaries is a significant step, it does not solve all the problems of education.
Another ambitious goal could be another 50% increase in the 2027 budget. However, as Severenchuk notes, it is difficult to predict what the realities will be in a year’s time in a country at war and in the world at large.
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