European Trade Union Committee for Education

Today, on 9 March 2017, F.E.CC.OO., FeSP-UGT and STEs-Intersindical, the ETUCE member organisations in Spain, together with students and parents are organising the education strike to demand the Spanish authorities to:

- repeal RD 14/2012 that leads to severe cuts in the Spanish education sector;

- withdraw the appeal to the Constitutional Court against the cessation of the LOMCE;

- repeal the LOMCE that fosters inequality in education and leads to segregation in Spanish society;

- reverse cuts in the education sector and improve education personnel’s working conditions;

- guarantee collective bargaining on all issues affecting education personnel;

- involve education social partners in the negotiations on an Education Pact.

Dissatisfied education personnel, students and teachers are protesting against education personnel’s precarious working conditions, low salaries or salaries that have been frozen for several years, large classroom sizes and dismissals in Spain that pose a severe threat to the future of the teaching profession in Spain and jeopardise the future of Spain’s youth.

“As education social partners, we believe that without guaranteeing decent working conditions for education personnel and involving education social partners in decision-making, the delivery of high quality education is going to be compromised. We strongly support our Spanish sister organisations in their appeal to the Spanish government to respect and promote the rights of Spanish education personnel”, said Susan Flocken, ETUCE European Director.

ETUCE stands firmly with its member organisations, their affiliates and all demonstrating people in their fight for quality education, education personnel’s rights and better future for Spain.

The demands of the ETUCE member organisations in Spain are fully in line with the main message of the Europe-wide campaign “Europe Needs a Pay Rise”. The campaign was launched by ETUC in February 2017 to tackle rising inequalities and in-work poverty, through effective social dialogue and the full restoration of collective bargaining.