Russian teachers’ fury at comments about pay

A petition calling on Russia’s president to sack Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev, whose comments about teachers’ pay sparked outrage earlier this week, has attracted more than 160,000 signatures.

When asked by a teacher from the impoverished Dagestan region why teachers are paid half as much as police officers, Medvedev retorted that teaching is not a job for those seeking to make a fortune and that teachers could always do odd jobs to supplement their income.

“I’m positive that a young, energetic teacher can get his pay that he’s entitled to as well as make some money on the side,” Medvedev told the teacher at a youth forum north of Moscow.