The Department of Education has already "ready" a proposal to improve the working conditions of teachers

The Catalan government already has several proposals on the table to improve the working conditions of teachers, but has not yet presented them to the unions. With less than 24 hours to go before the teachers' strike called jointly by all the sector's unions, sources from the Department of Education insist that the government "remains at the negotiating table and is committed to reaching agreements to improve the working conditions of teachers and educational support staff." Although last week's meeting between unions and the department to continue negotiations was canceled, the government maintains that it has prepared a proposal to improve working conditions "which it hopes to begin discussing at the sectoral bargaining table." Furthermore, the same sources assert that the department "already has a proposal ready" to improve the specific supplement—the remuneration given for the particular conditions of the job, such as technical difficulty, level of dedication, responsibility, incompatibility, or hazardous nature. According to the Department of Education, which has not specified exactly what the improvement will entail, this is one of the measures they believe "can respond to the demands of the educational community and incorporates all the requests from previous meetings." They also assert that the proposal "aims to address the historical underfunding of the Educational Support Staff (PAE)." Aside from salary aspects, the Government's proposal also includes a reduction in student-teacher ratios and progress in streamlining bureaucracy, as well as more resources for inclusive education and recognition of the different roles of each teacher. However, the proposal, which the Government has reportedly finalized, will be contingent on the executive's budget situation, as the current budget remains extended. USTEC denounces "abusive" minimum service requirements.

On Monday night, the Department of Business and Labor sent the unions the minimum services required for Wednesday's strike in schools and institutes. The limits set by the Catalan government are one teacher for every three classrooms in preschool, primary, and secondary education, and 33% of the staff in daycare centers. For special education centers, at least 50% of the staff must be working. In addition, all centers must have at least one member of the management team present. According to USTEC, "these minimum services are clearly excessive and reflect an attempt to limit and render meaningless the fundamental right to strike." They denounce that, according to their calculations, in many small schools and rural schools, "these minimums could completely neutralize the mobilization, without guaranteeing essential rights."