Bhutan Made Teachers and Medical Staff the Highest-Paid Civil Servants in the Country

Bhutan has officially made teachers and medical staff the highest-paid civil servants in the country. In the U.S., by contrast, the highest-paid public employees in most states are college football coaches.

When Bhutan’s new law goes into effect, teachers with zero to 10 years of experience will see a 35% pay raise, while teachers with 10 to 20 years of experience will receive a 45% pay raise. Those with over 20 years of experience will get a raise of 55%.

Bhutan is a small majority-Buddhist country with a population of just 750,000, and the pay raise will affect a significant portion of the population.

India Express reports,

“The numbers of teachers involved in the hike are huge as there are 8,679 teachers, followed by the medical staff who number around 4,000.”

A press release from the Bhutanese Prime Minister’s Office said,

“If the pay revision comes through as proposed by the government, teaching becomes the highest paid profession in the country.”

Meanwhile in the U.S., the highest-paid public employee in the country is Nick Saban, football coach at the University of Alabama, who makes $11.1 million per year. The average teacher in Alabama only earns $50,000 per year.

Bhutan’s new pay structure was pushed by prime minister Lotay Tshering, who was elected in 2018.

Tshering is a one-of-a-kind leader in more than one way. He was a highly regarded doctor before he entered politics, and he continues to work as a surgeon on the weekends, The Guardian reports.

Per India Express, his reasoning behind the pay raise was that teachers and medical staff experience higher stress levels and longer working hours than many other professions.

What do you think about this info? Could we do it in the US?

Let us know your thoughts in the comments!

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