CCOO and UGT reach an agreement with the Education Department for an additional 3,000 euros for teachers in a deal without Ustec.

BarcelonaA half-hearted agreement has been reached between the Catalan government and teachers' unions. This Monday, the Department of Education presented the unions with its fourth and, in theory, final proposal to avert the protests planned for next week in response to the massive teachers' strike a month ago. According to announcements by CCOO and UGT, both unions have accepted the proposal and reached an agreement with the government, while Ustec, the sector's largest union, has not endorsed the pact and asserted that it "appears" the Department of Education has broken off negotiations. The most anticipated part of the proposal concerns salaries. According to the unions, the Department of Education has offered a 30% increase in the specific supplement over four years, meaning that by 2029 teachers would earn approximately €3,000 more gross annually than they do now. According to CCOO, with this new proposal, Catalan teachers would move from being at the bottom of the national salary scale to being the third highest paid in Spain. Monday's offer doubles the initial proposal the government sent to teachers, which stipulated an additional €1,500 over four years. It also addresses a long-standing demand: that teachers be paid for attending summer camps or school trips. Specifically, the proposal includes a €50 night allowance for teachers to cover overnight stays.

Regarding the increased teaching duties that the Government had already warned would be necessary to justify the salary increase, teachers will initially be required to contribute to identifying students' educational needs—a task they generally already undertake—and secondary school teachers will also be asked to provide guidance to help them. Again, this is work they already typically perform. Among other measures included in the department's final proposal is a gradual reduction in class sizes to be rolled out over the coming years, aiming for a maximum of 20 students per group in preschool and primary school, 25 in secondary school (ESO), and 30 in upper secondary school (Bachillerato) and vocational training (FP). Furthermore, a review of the complexity of schools is also promised for next year. As already indicated in previous proposals, the document presented today by the Government to the unions also includes recognizing teachers as public authorities in the exercise of their teaching duties.

A week of strikes

The offer from the education department, led by Esther Niubó—who remains on medical leave—is the fourth the Catalan government has put on the table since February 11, when teachers staged one of the largest strikes in recent years, with 55% participation and more than 70,000 protesters in the streets of Catalonia. In fact, Monday's proposal comes seven days before the week of strikes that the unions had jointly called for, with demonstrations throughout Catalonia between March 16 and 20. The Ustec union is maintaining this schedule of mobilizations, while the CCOO and UGT unions have distanced themselves from the call after reaching an agreement with the Education Department. Thus, Ustec is calling for a strike on Monday, March 16, in schools and institutes in the Baix Llobregat, Barcelona, ​​and Barcelonès regions; Tuesday the 17th, in Tarragona, Terres de l'Ebre, and Penedès; Wednesday the 18th in Lleida, the Pyrenees, and Central Catalonia; and Thursday the 19th in Maresme, Vallès Oriental and Occidental, and Girona. Finally, they plan to end the week with a strike across Catalonia on Friday the 20th, which will be accompanied by another unified demonstration in Barcelona.