Barcelona was again the setting on Friday as Catalonia’s Education Ministry and teaching unions resumed talks over a long-running dispute about a new education agreement. The meeting followed a two-hour session on Thursday that ended without a deal, according to La Vanguardia.
The main unions involved, Ustec and CCOO Educació, both said they want the dispute to end for the good of the education community, but they remain divided over the agreement signed by the Catalan government in March.
Ustec spokesperson Iolanda Segura said the union had returned to negotiations in the hope of reaching an agreement. She said the government had underestimated the depth of teacher discontent, despite the investment already made in education, and argued that schools are dealing with increasingly complex classrooms and unresolved problems.
Segura said Ustec had been close to signing in March, with only a few salary details and points on inclusive education still open, but it ultimately decided not to back the deal. She also said the union is seeking a salary rise double the current proposal, the return of historical pay debts, and improvements to inclusive education. She added that coordination and specialist supplements should also increase, and pointed to higher pay for teachers in Cantabria as a comparison.
CCOO Educació secretary Eduardo Núñez defended the March agreement, saying his union signed it because it remains a good deal. He said it has a €2 billion impact over four years, covers staffing, inclusive education and salaries, and was built around demands from all unions within a single framework. Núñez also said the agreement is flexible and that details still need to be settled in the implementation commission.
Núñez acknowledged the mobilisation that followed and said CCOO respects the protests as a response to real discontent. He said the union would prefer Ustec, the majority union among teachers, to join the agreement now, and stressed that the deal depends on budget availability. He also said CCOO would not give up the €2 billion set aside for inclusion and pay.
Protest measures have included some teachers refusing to take part in school trips and camps, which Segura defended as a pressure tactic. She said these activities can mean 24 hours of work without sleep, and argued that the cost to children of underfunding in classrooms is worse. The talks are expected to continue as the unions and ministry try to narrow their differences. For more local coverage, see our Catalonia news page.
