site.btaRomania's Education Trade Unions Call on President to Intervene Over Austerity Measures Affecting Education System

For the second time in less than a month, Romania's education trade unions have called on President Nicusor Dan to intervene and reverse government measures aimed at reducing the national budget deficit, that the unions say threaten the public education system.

In an open letter published on their official online platforms, the unions protest against the measures introduced by the government of Prime Minister Ilie Bolojan. The measures include an increase in the mandatory number of teaching hours, a reduction in hourly wages, cuts to student scholarships, and merging of small schools.

On July 24, the unions also addressed an open letter to the President, urging him not to promulgate the first package of fiscal measures.

“The reality is that some full-time teachers will be laid off. Others will no longer receive their full salaries because meeting the 20-hour requirement will be impossible,” the letter states. The unions argue that the proposed changes will worsen the shortage of qualified staff and further undermine the quality of education.

They are calling on the President to act as a mediator between the state and civil society. Failing that, they warn of large-scale protest actions.

Teachers in Bucharest and across the country have been protesting in front of the Education Ministry for over a week. On Thursday, for the first time, demonstrators also gathered in front of a political party headquarters, that of the Save Romania Union. The protest was broadcast live online. One of the banners held by demonstrators from Dambovita, Mehedinti, Braila, and Bucharest read: “The future is in the classroom – don’t destroy it with foolish laws.”

The unions are planning a mass rally of 30,000 people on September 8, the first day of the new school year.

Meanwhile, Romania’s major national trade union confederations have agreed to prepare a joint list of demands and stage city-by-city protests starting August 20 in opposition to the government’s fiscal policy.