The Ministry of Higher Education has responded to the widespread protests witnessed in the universities of Damascus and Aleppo over the past days, announcing new compensation for a number of workers in the sector after a wave of anger sparked by their exclusion from the qualitative increase stipulated in Decree No. 68 of 2026.

The Minister of Higher Education and Scientific Research, Dr. Marwan Al-Halabi, unveiled, on Saturday evening, June 13, a new compensation package that affects a number of job descriptions in the Ministry, universities and affiliated bodies, including resident physicians (studies and health), members of the technical staff, engineers and teachers in technical institutes.

Al-Halabi explained, through a post on his Facebook page, that the amendments included raising the resident doctor's compensation by 6,500 new Syrian pounds to reach his monthly salary of 45,500 Syrian pounds, in addition to granting the members of the technical staff the same compensation despite not having their job status mentioned in the previous increase schedules.

The total added increases for engineers in universities, technical institutes and institutions affiliated with the ministry amounted to about 48 thousand Syrian pounds according to the approved categories and benefits, according to the minister's circular.

The Minister stressed that teachers and members of the teaching staff in the technical institutes have received "satisfactory" qualitative increases, reflecting the importance of their role in the educational and training process, according to the various scientific qualifications of holders of bachelor's, master's and doctorates.

With regard to administrative workers in universities, institutes and the central administration, Al-Halabi pointed out that the ministry is currently working to complete the study of new proposals to improve their employment conditions, provided that the details of which will be announced as soon as they are officially approved.

Previous protests and the threat of a strike

During the past few days, the universities of Damascus and Aleppo witnessed widespread protests carried out by university employees, teachers of technical institutes, administrators and technicians, rejecting their exemption from the qualitative increase in salaries and wages approved by the government under Decree No. 68 of 2026 on the higher education and scientific research sector.

These moves came after the issuance of the executive regulations last May, which limited the largest increases to the teaching staff of university presidents, doctors, and assistant professors, which sparked a wave of anger among the auxiliary staff, who considered the decision to be a perpetuation of job discrimination within academic institutions.

In their sit-ins in front of the Ministry of Higher Education and the presidency of the universities of Damascus and Aleppo, the protesters chanted that administrators, technicians, engineers, and teachers of technical institutes are the "backbone of the educational process," and that excluding them from the qualitative increase ignores the daily role they play in operating exams, laboratories, archiving, and financial and service departments.

A number of participants threatened to resort to an open strike if the legal texts were not amended to ensure that they were included in the increases like the rest of the workers.

On the other hand, the Ministry of Higher Education tried to contain the protests by pledging that the demands of the excluded groups were "under direct follow-up" and that it was preparing supplementary instructions and new procedures aimed at fairness to engineers, institute teachers, and technical cadres, in order to ensure their job stability and address the gaps that emerged after the implementation of the qualitative increase.

Salaries up to 218 thousand SYP

The Ministry of Finance, in cooperation with the Ministries of Health, Education and Higher Education, has published schedules that determine salary increases in accordance with Decree No. 68 of 2026.

The salaries of the health sector start from 26 thousand Syrian pounds for the nurse and reach 143 thousand new pounds for the director of the health directorate.

While the salaries of the education sector start at 23,000 new pounds for teachers outside the staff, and a class teacher of the first category is entitled to 36 new Syrian pounds, and up to 52,000 for the assistant director of education.

At the Ministry of Higher Education, salaries start at 26,000 Syrian pounds for nurses of the second category, and reach 218,000 Syrian pounds for the president of the university.