Student and teacher groups in France have called for a strike on Tuesday as they keep up pressure on the government for more education spending, continuing weeks of school closures and protests. The nationwide mobilisation has been organised by several trade unions representing education workers and students, who say the government's response to concerns about staffing, funding and the future of the education system has so far been inadequate.
One of France's major teaching unions, Snes-FSU, also criticised the government's decision to exclude public-sector workers from a social conference on wages organised by Prime Minister Sébastien Lecornu on Monday, November 9th. The meeting brought together trade unions and employer representatives to discuss pay, but public-sector unions were not invited, leading Snes-FSU to state the exclusion confirms the contempt shown by this government. Public-sector unions are instead due to meet Lecornu on Friday, November 13th.
Tuesday's demonstration follows a nationwide day of strikes and demonstrations on November 5th, which brought together workers from several sectors demanding better pay and defending public services. Education was particularly affected during that action, with Snes-FSU reporting that 52 percent of teachers and other education staff were on strike, while nearly 1,000 secondary schools were either partially or fully blocked or administratively closed. Among their demands, the unions are calling for more permanent teaching and support staff, investment in school and university buildings, higher salaries, improved access to higher education, and changes to the Parcoursup university admissions system.
The strike call covers the whole of France, with demonstrations and gatherings planned in cities across the country, including a student-organised demonstration in Paris starting at Place de la Bastille at 2pm. In nursery and primary schools, teachers must declare their intention to strike at least 48 hours in advance, and local authorities must organise a minimum childcare service if at least a quarter of teachers strike. For secondary levels, there is no guaranteed minimum childcare service, meaning lessons may be cancelled and further blockades outside some schools may occur.
Source: The Local. Read the original report ↗