Can I give gifts to teachers?

What should be a gift for a teacher, and whether it is necessary, in general, to give it - a question that worries parents and students at all times. It is no secret that in some cases it came to direct orders for expensive jewelry, equipment, and tickets. With the advent of purchase certificates, the situation only worsened. For a year, on such gifts for each occasion (Knowledge Day, Teacher's Day, New Year's Day, March 8, last call, teacher's birthday, and so on), the average family laid out a very tidy sum.

Some active parents, confident that the teacher’s attitude to children directly depends on the number and cost of gifts, offered to give them even, for example, on Mother’s Day and even on Memorial Day of Vera, Hope and Love. Those who refused to contribute money were reported to teachers, thus “correcting” both grades and interpersonal relationships. This situation could not continue indefinitely, calls for decency on greedy teachers and unnecessarily “generous” parents did not affect, as a result, this mess was limited by law.

The federal law governing the donation procedure (article 575 of the Civil Code of the Russian Federation) was called to solve the problem of combating corruption. Initially, the amount spent on the purchase of a gift should not exceed five minimum wages. The new edition, which entered into force on December 30, 2018, adopted a more stringent restriction.

It is forbidden to take such a gift not only to teachers, but also to educators and doctors.This will be regarded as receiving a bribe. But this prohibition does not apply to remuneration received from management.

In addition, it is legal to give something to your beloved teacher only in honor of his birthday, professional or public holiday. The Ministry of Labor of the Russian Federation introduced another bill for discussion, which is expected to be adopted by mid-2019. It will be possible to thank a teacher or doctor only with a bouquet of flowers or stationery. It must be printed products: calendar, notebook, notebook.

Adopted restrictions, of course, make it difficult to choose a presentation.

In order not to let the teacher or doctor down, you need to be guided by the following principles:

• delivery of a gift should be timed to a significant date;
• this is a gratuitous action that does not imply any response, that is, on the eve of the exam, credit, test, nothing can be given;
• teacher's attitude to students and parents should not depend on the value of the gift;
• traditional gifts such as coffee, tea, sweets, alcohol are prohibited.

The cost of the gift is limited to three thousand rubles.

If this amount is exceeded, the teacher must:

• donate to the municipality, where the present will be put on balance, and then either put up for sale or used for its intended purpose;
• refund the amount spent on the purchase of a gift;
• leave a gift to the giver.

There must be no prior arrangement regarding the gift between the giver and the giver. If this is a pleasant surprise on the eve of the holiday - this is a gift, otherwise - a bribe.

Equated to it:

• vacation tickets, spa treatment, paid hotel accommodation;
• payment for training, treatment;
• jewelry, vehicles, household appliances, furniture;
• tickets to attend a concert, exhibition, theater;
• subscriptions to fitness centers, beauty salons;
• provision of various benefits;
• paid visit to a restaurant, club, cafe;
• recognition of the right to inheritance by will.

The question of whether it is possible to give the teacher a commemorative album with photographs or, as a more modern option, a video film that captures significant moments from the life of the class and thanksgiving statements or wishes on behalf of students and parents is also controversial. These touching gifts do not belong to office supplies, but, on the other hand, are of value only as a souvenir.

In addition, the law does not stipulate a few very important points.

• What to do if parents voluntarily collect 3 thousand rubles each and present the entire amount in an envelope. It would seem that there is no actual violation of the law, but if there are 20-30 people in the class, then the total amount will already be quite significant.
• The price limit applies only to gifts, delivered directly to the school, kindergarten or medical institution. Thus, if this happens at a festive event that has been moved outside the walls of the institution, then such offerings can be taken.
• The punishment for receiving a bribe is imposed by the leadership of the institution. How to determine the degree of guilt of a teacher is a very subjective question. Most often this is a fine, but there may be a dismissal.
• Voluntary delivery of an expensive gift left to the discretion of the teacher himself, but he may not suspect his true value, and of parents who are unlikely to inform the management about it.

Of course, a teacher or a doctor who values ​​his reputation will not do the same, but the law does not provide full protection from the greed of some representatives of these professions.

The opinions of teachers and parents on the issue of gifts were divided. In the forums where this topic was discussed, serious battles flared up. On the one hand, many teachers were offended by the fact that this topic, in general, was proposed for discussion. Cases of overt extortion by educators are not so frequent as to stipulate this at the legislative level, it was enough to introduce these rules at the level of the charter of the educational institution or code of ethics.

A teacher is, indeed, a complex and responsible profession. In addition to knowledge of the subject, the ability to convey information to students, the teacher must have a considerable margin of mental strength to organize the educational process. And it’s quite understandable that the parents and students sincerely wish to thank the teacher for their attention and care.

And, indeed, parents confirm that class teachers at the pre-parent meetings prior to the school year warn that they don’t accept any gifts, suggesting that by significant dates they should be limited to a general bouquet from the class. If you want to direct material resources for the benefit of the school and your own children.

Teachers, in turn, complain that sometimes they have to literally “fight back” from persistent parents who manage to hide expensive gifts in books, flowers, souvenirs made by children. A decent teacher in this case gets into a very ambiguous situation.

For such a category of teachers, both the current law and the draft law under discussion are not only not burdensome and not restrictive acts, but also a real salvation from active parents.

And parents are “obligated" to compensate for the difference from their own pockets. Therefore, a gift to the teacher is a gift to him personally, and fees for school needs and equipment of the study room are a separate item of expenses. And there are far from rare cases when such “teachers” make real scandals about an insufficiently generous offering.

These are exorbitant appetites that force parents to lay out significant amounts, and are designed to moderate the legislative measures taken. Students will be protected from the fact that the teacher’s attitude towards them, knowledge assessments are measured by the amount collected for the “gift”, which in fact is a bribe.

Of course, disputes will continue, but still it will be possible to resolve conflicts at the legislative level, protecting students and their parents from moral and financial losses.

The opinion of people about whether it is possible to give gifts to teachers, you can see in the next video.