The Teachers Dignity Coalition (TDC) has welcomed the Department of Educations (DepEd) issuance of Memorandum No. 004, s. 2025, dated January 9, 2025. The memorandum is seen as an important response to the clamor of public school teachers following the Civil Service Commission (CSC) Memorandum Circular No. 16, s. 2024, which introduced stricter dress code requirements for government employees that includes wearing of ASEAN and Filipiniana-inspired attire every Monday.

The memorandum particularly reconstitutes the DepEd Uniform Committee (DUC), tasked with developing inclusive and practical uniform policies for DepEd teachers and personnel. The committee includes representatives from nine national organizations, including TDC, ensuring that teachers concerns are effectively addressed.

DepEd Secretary Sonny Angara stated that the initiative reflects the agencys responsiveness to the needs of its personnel and its commitment to fostering a supportive working environment.

Earlier, TDC, through its national chairperson Benjo Basas, appealed to both DepEd and CSC to clarify or modify the new dress code to make it more practical and realistic. Basas emphasized that the CSC directive poses challenges for public school teachers due to their unique working conditions.

Teachers endure physical demands and the heat in classrooms, unlike office-based personnel who work in stationary and air-conditioned environments, Basas said. We welcome DepEd’s efforts to align policies with teachers realities, he added.

DepEd has six months to finalize internal guidelines, during which the existing dress code remains in effect.

We urge the DepEd leadership to call the attention of field officials who have already required their teachers and staff to wear ASEAN and Filipiniana attire last Monday, despite the absence of directives from higher authorities, Basas said. Such actions might set a precedent, he concluded.

The TDC has officially designated its National Vice Chairperson Olivia De Guzman, a teacher from Morning Breeze Elementary School in Caloocan City as the groups representative to the said committee. #

For details:
Benjo Basas, TDC National Chairperson
09273356375