In Catalonia, Ustec-STEs, the largest union in the education sector, said on Friday evening that it would call off regional strikes planned for the coming week while teachers vote on a pre-agreement with the Education Department.
The consultation among teachers starts at 12 pm on Monday and ends at the same time on Thursday. Assemblies at education centres will review the proposal, and the union has said it will accept the result of the vote. Ustec-STEs has not yet suspended the general strike planned for Friday, 5 June, which includes a demonstration in Barcelona.
The secondary school teachers’ union Aspepc has also paused its planned mobilisations during the four-day consultation period. Ustec-STEs said the agreement brings important advances, but added that some demands remain unresolved and that further work will be needed to improve rights and working conditions.
Education Minister Esther Niubó said she expects the consultation to end with support for the pact. She said the deal was reached with the sectoral table and four of the five unions with representation. Niubó also said the new salary conditions would make Catalan primary and secondary teachers the best paid in Spain, with an average rise of €450 a month and the recovery of seniority bonuses lost during budget cuts.
Unions linked to CGT and Intersindical, which did not sign the agreement, will continue with their protest plans. They have actions scheduled in Girona and Central Catalonia on Monday, in the Barcelona Education Consortium and metropolitan cities on Tuesday, in Tarragona and the Terres de l’Ebre on Wednesday, and in Lleida and Alt Pirineu i Aran on Thursday. The week is due to end with a general strike across Catalan education centres and a sector demonstration in Barcelona.
CGT says the offer is still not enough. Laura Gené, a CGT spokesperson, said the proposal does not address key issues such as resources for inclusive education or class sizes. The latest offer includes an extra €50 for a new supplement for all teachers, which would rise to €173 in four years. Combined with the 30% increase agreed with CCOO and UGT in March, and state-level pay rises, teachers would receive about €600 gross more per month in four years.
The agreement also includes the recovery of the sexenni debt over five years. This seniority bonus was paid every six years until 2012, then extended to nine years during the cuts. The cut was reversed in 2024, and the administration has now accepted payment for the money not received during that period. More Catalonia news