School assistants in Cyprus have expressed strong complaints over the confusion prevailing around their actual duties and the fact that they are overworked and underpaid.
The complaints were raised during the House Education Committee meeting on Wednesday, according to Philenews.
One said that school assistants working in nurseries have been turned into “bionic women” of sorts as they are assigned to do almost everything and given completion timeframes that are not realistic.
“We are helpers, cleaners, gardeners, we organise children’s food, money collectors and if necessary, we even cover educational duties in cases where teachers are absent”, another added.
In addition, they reiterated their long time request that the profession of school assistants working in nursery schools – both public and private – is clarified and clearly distinguished from that of school cleaning staff.
They also stressed the need of a pay scale upgrade as salaries do not exceed €1,200 regardless of amount of years of employment that have passed, while pensions do not exceed €500 even with 30 plus years of work.
