By Own Correspondent

The Amalgamated Rural Teachers Union of Zimbabwe (ARTUZ) officially launched the Teachers’ Basket of Needs Survey Report on 19 May 2026 in a historic virtual gathering attended by teachers, union representatives, civil society organisations, education stakeholders, researchers, and members of the progressive press.

The survey findings exposed the deepening socio-economic crisis confronting Zimbabwean educators and confirmed that teachers are surviving under unbearable conditions characterised by poverty wages, debt dependency, transport hardships, poor housing, unaffordable healthcare, energy insecurity, and unsustainable living conditions.The report established that the majority of teachers are spending between 10% and 30% of their salaries on energy alone, while many continue to rely on firewood due to lack of affordable electricity and clean energy alternatives.

The findings further revealed that teachers are spending substantial amounts of their salaries on transport, with many educators in rural areas walking long distances daily to access schools due to inadequate transport support and poor infrastructure.The survey also highlighted a devastating healthcare crisis affecting teachers and their families. Over 70% of respondents described healthcare services as poor or very poor, while medical costs, consultation fees, and transport expenses continue to block access to quality healthcare.

ARTUZ notes with concern that teachers are forced to spend large portions of their already inadequate salaries on medical expenses while receiving poor services in return.Equally alarming is the indebtedness crisis facing educators.

The survey confirmed that nearly 80% of teachers are trapped in debt through bank loans, salary-based loans, microfinance institutions, and exploitative informal lenders. The findings demonstrate that low salaries remain the primary driver of indebtedness among teachers.The report further exposed the “Triple Burden” confronting educators, where teachers are forced to balance formal teaching responsibilities with survivalist side hustles such as farming, poultry projects, informal trading, artisanal mining, and extra lessons simply to survive.

ARTUZ strongly maintains that a teacher should not be reduced to perpetual survival struggles while carrying the responsibility of educating the nation.Following the launch, ARTUZ officially declared the commencement of *OPERATION DIGNITY* which is a national campaign for Civil Servant Dignity and Restoration. The campaign emerges directly from the realities exposed by the survey and seeks to mobilise educators and civil servants against poverty wages, exploitation, and deteriorating working conditions.

ARTUZ reaffirmed the implementation of collective survival mechanisms including the Two-Day Working Week and resistance against expensive colonial-era dress codes that no longer reflect the realities facing educators. The Union maintains that teachers cannot continue subsidising the failures of the state through unpaid labour and personal sacrifice.