Are We Required to Pay Teachers More for Covering a Colleague's Maternity Leave?

Hello all,

Ours is a coaching institute. Recently, a teacher resigned due to maternity, and we were unable to backfill her position even after around 4 months of searching. Hence, we approached the other teachers of the same subjects to see if they could share her workload during their regular work hours, as they had free sessions. Are we obligated to pay them since they are doing someone else's work? Or can we ask them to manage on the same salary since their work hours have not changed? It's just that their free hours are now being utilized.

When you know that the teachers are shouldering someone else's load, why do you raise such a question? In a regular college, the system would be different because there is no scope for paying overtime wages to teachers. However, in a commercially set up tuition center, the system in a regular college will not apply but should be governed by the labor law in force.

It is also true that an employee in a factory or a commercial establishment should work for at least 8 hours excluding intervals for rest before becoming entitled to overtime payments. However, in a tuition center, the salary is fixed based on the sessions taken and the subject handled. It is agreed that in order to conduct a one-hour session, the teacher is expected to prepare for one hour, which is also considered as working hours. If the teacher has to take an extra session, they will have to prepare for it using some other spare time, either while being in the tuition center or at home. This effort should certainly be rewarded by paying an additional amount. Therefore, the remuneration that would have been paid to the resigning teacher should be shared among the other teachers who would shoulder the additional burden until a replacement is found.

To add to what is stated above and endorsing the same, you may be able to save some money by distributing the extra workload without any additional remuneration. However, next time, you might not get any volunteers when such an occasion arises. This scenario is often repeated in tuition centers. Apart from the monetary aspect, such teachers would feel they are being recognized, and their efforts are appreciated. Therefore, it is not worth it to save some inconsequential money.