Contract Faculty Seek Pay Parity, Job Security in Varsities
It also asks the government to absorb eligible contract teachers.
Hyderabad:Contract faculty working across 12 state universities in Telangana have sought 7th PRC‑UGC pay scales, job security and service protection as the government prepares to recruit Assistant Professors. The teachers say some of them have served universities for more than two decades, while an oral assurance given by the government last year that existing contract jobs would be protected has not resulted in a formal order.
Dr D. Thirupathi, vice‑president of the University Contract Teachers Association, said some teachers had spent almost their entire careers on contract. “There are contract teachers in the 12 universities who have been working for 22, 25 and even 30 years,” he said.
The association said their last salary revision came in 2018 under the 6th PRC‑UGC scales. Regular university teachers received the 7th PRC scales in 2019, effective from January 1, 2016, but contract faculty have not received a corresponding revision. Thirupathi also claimed their salaries are now lower than those paid to contract lecturers in government Junior, Polytechnic and Degree colleges.
Their representation seeks a basic pay of ₹57,700, along with a 3 per cent annual increment, PhD incentive, DA and HRA. It also asks the government to absorb eligible contract teachers.
The association has cited 2,878 sanctioned teaching posts across the universities, of which it says 753 are occupied by regular faculty, leaving 2,125 vacant. It has proposed that 1,200 posts be kept aside to protect existing contract teachers.
GO 21, issued on April 4, 2025, prescribes the direct recruitment process for assistant professors in 12 universities. The order recognises government and university contract teaching experience and awards one point for each year of service, capped at 10 points.
Thirupathi said the government had orally assured them around April–May 2025 that existing jobs would not be disturbed while other vacancies were filled. “If there is no response from the government, we will plan further action,” he said, adding that protest and legal options were under consideration.