Tensions remain high between Catalan teachers’ unions and the regional government’s Department of Education, with a week-long strike planned for March hanging in the balance over a dispute on pay. Despite progress in negotiations on class sizes and school resources, union representatives insist that without a substantial salary improvement, widespread industrial action is inevitable.

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Following a third meeting this week, five of the region’s main education unions-Ustec·Stes, Aspepc·Sps, CC.OO. Educació, CGT, and UGT-stated that proposals to improve working conditions fail to address their core demand. The talks convened after a major strike just over a week ago emptied classrooms across Catalonia, demonstrating the sector’s resolve.

Proposals on the Table

According to union sources, the Department of Education, part of the Generalitat de Catalunya, has put forward several non-salary-related improvements. For the next academic year, the government has reportedly guaranteed no class groups will exceed official student-teacher ratios; additionally, vocational training (FP) groups will be capped at 30 students.

Longer-term plans for the 2027-2028 academic year include reducing class sizes to 20 pupils in infant and primary education. For secondary education (ESO), 25% of schools would have a ratio of 25 students, while 40% of Baccalaureate centres would have groups of 30.

In addition, the department has proposed enhancements for inclusive education, with commitments to provide more resources for psychologists and pedagogues, and to internalise 300 social integration specialists. However, the financial package has become the primary point of contention.

Unions Dismiss Pay Offer as ‘Derisory’

The government’s salary offer consists of a 20% increase in a specific pay supplement, phased in over five years. This would amount to an increase of between €141 and €144 gross per month by 2030, with an initial rise of just €28 per month next year. Unions were quick to reject the proposal, labelling it insufficient and insulting.

“The offer is inacceptable,” said Iolanda Segura, spokesperson for Ustec·Stes, in comments reported by VilaWeb. She described the proposal as “irrisory,” noting it represented only a 4% salary increase, despite teachers having lost an estimated 25% of their purchasing power in recent years. “If the department does not come up with a good proposal, the strikes in March-from the 16th to the 20th-remain in place,” she warned.

Ignasi Fernández of Aspepc·Sps echoed this sentiment, stating that a “true framework of negotiation” on pay was absent. He contrasted the government’s offer of roughly €141 more per month with the unions’ demand for €700. Other union representatives, while acknowledging the government’s efforts on issues like summer assignments and inclusive schooling, maintained a united front on the need for a better pay deal.

March Strikes Loom as Deadlock Continues

With negotiations at a critical juncture, the unions are maintaining their call for a five-day strike from 16 to 20 March. The planned action, which follows a series of regional protests including a large demonstration in Tortosa, is set to culminate in a major protest in Barcelona.

The standoff in the education sector is part of a wider landscape of public sector discontent in Catalonia, where doctors and other workers have also recently taken to the streets over pay and conditions. For now, attention remains focused on the negotiating table at the Department of Education’s headquarters on Via Augusta. Without a significantly improved offer, Catalonia’s 97,000 public school teachers appear ready to walk out, threatening major disruption to the final weeks of the school term.