More than 15,000 trade unionists from the whole country are expected to participate today in a protest march organised by three education trade union federations that starts at Victoriei Square and ends before Parliament Palace, write Agerpres.
„The Federation of Free Education Trade Unions, the Spiru Haret Federation of Education Trade Unions and the Alma Mater National Trade Union Federation, on behalf of the more than 350,000 employees in education whose rights and interests they represent, will organise on Wednesday, May 10, 2023, starting at 11:00hrs, a protest march that will start in Victoriei Square and end before Parliament Palace. More than 15,000 trade union members from all over the country have announced that they will participate in this protest march. The action aims to attract attention to the problems faced by the Romanian education system, especially its employees – teaching, non-teaching and auxiliary teaching staff,” according to the trade union federations.
The demands of the education trade unionists are increasing teachers’ pay in accordance with the social importance of the work they performed starting from the principle that the salary of the beginning teachers should be at least equal to the gross average pay, with the salary of the entire teaching staff to increase progressively according to position, studies, seniority and teaching degree; establishing the rule of annual indexation of staff salaries paid from public funds, with the inflation rate; paying additional hours to auxiliary and non-teaching staff.
Also, the trade unionists demand pay bonuses for working conditions of the education staff; granting the rights provided for in the legislation in force and the applicable collective bargaining agreements – commuting cost refunds, additional vacation leave, cash compensation for unused vacation leave days; annual increase in investment in education; abandoning the EduSal application and replacing it with a payroll computer application managed and administered by the Ministry of Education.
The leaders of the trade union federations say that there is currently a referendum on triggering a general strike in education on May 22, 2023 if their problems are not resolved.
The education unions started the protests in April, when they picketed the Government headquarters for two days – April 25 and 26.
