Ustec rejects the Government's educational debate and threatens new strikes in November

BarcelonaSlammed door by Ustec to the country debate to improve education in Catalonia commissioned by President Salvador Illa. In a press conference, the majority union in the education sector explained this Tuesday that it does not accept "the framework proposed by the Government" because it "intends to derive exclusively" the debate through the Education Council of Catalonia. The coordinator of union action, Andreu Mumbrú, has said that they understand the Government's proposal as "a will to deactivate mobilization and dilute the voice of professionals in the centers". "We wonder if public education needs yet another debate", he reproached.

The representatives of Ustec have insisted again on demanding from the Government "a real negotiation". Although they have positively valued that the objective of reaching 6% of GDP in education and the plan to air-condition classrooms have been included in the debate, they have already announced that "if there are no verifiable advances" the union will call for strikes again in November. In this sense, they have accused the Government of wanting to "deactivate" the conflict and "dilute" their voice and that of all education workers with a "sterile" debate. The union spokesperson, Iolanda Segura, has insisted that the debate proposal "cannot replace a negotiation with the legitimate representation of public school unions".

In this way, the union urges the Government to create a new table and a negotiation framework to shield public education in five areas "with prior documentation, concrete objectives, political responsibles, budget, deadlines and public monitoring mechanisms". Ustec wants 6% of GDP to be allocated to public schools and for the first increase to materialize in the 2027 budget; a reduction of ratios and increases in structural staff according to the needs of each center regarding inclusive education; a salary clause linked to the CPI, the rehabilitation of school and institute buildings and the shielding of Catalan in the centers.

Paying for school trips

Regarding the fact that hundreds of centers have said that this academic year they will not hold camps or field trips as a protest measure, Mumbrú has defended that "whoever has the final responsibility to resolve this situation is the Government". "If it is such a concern [...], it is as simple as the Government paying what all the hours of field trips and camps cost", the unionist insisted. Furthermore, he said that "one cannot pretend" to use emotional blackmail with camps and field trips by "loading free hours" onto professionals.