Tension between the Department of Education and teaching unions has characterized the school year in Catalonia, culminating in a year with 25 strike days. This situation, which has included general and sectoral protests, particularly in Barcelona, suggests that the next academic year will also begin with demands from teachers. Unions insist on greater investment for public schools, while the department defends the agreements reached as significant progress in improving educational center conditions.
The initial union demands at the start of the academic year included recovering lost purchasing power, salary improvements, reducing student-teacher ratios, and increasing resources for inclusive education. These requests led to calls for demonstrations and sit-ins at the department since November. Negotiations, initially united under a common union front, fractured on March 9 when UGT and CCOO signed an agreement rejected by other organizations such as USTEC, CGT, Professors de Secundària, Intersindical, and COS. This event led to further stoppages and protests during May and June.
A pre-agreement reached on May 29 offered a glimmer of hope for resolution, proposing a salary increase of almost 600 euros over four years. However, a vote among teachers concluded with the rejection of this proposal, arguing that the fundamental issues of ratios and inclusion were not sufficiently addressed. This decision opens an uncertain scenario, with the department determined to proceed with the agreement and majority unions like USTEC and CGT demanding additional changes. As a protest measure, many centers have already announced they will not organize school trips next year.
