On Friday evening, the Ministry of Education said that in the context of the general strike announced in education, it was discussed with the inspectors of secondary schools and they call on the responsibility of school principals so that the educational process continues and students learn. safe in educational units. We will remind, on Friday, the National Federation of Parents requested to publish a number of information and clarifications regarding the management of the general strike, which will begin on Monday in education. This will be the first general strike in education in 18 years.

In a statement released on Friday evening, the Ministry of Education says it is taking all legal measures within its competence to avoid the start of a general strike that will begin on May 22, 2023. at the same time, we are concerned and take the necessary measures to protect students’ right to education,” the ministry said.

The institution states that on Friday it held a video conference with county school inspectorates, “during which I presented them with the general framework of social dialogue and told them to constantly monitor how educational activities are carried out at the county level, communicating constantly with all participants in the educational process.”

“In this approach,” says the Ministry of Education, “we also count on the responsibility of the heads of each educational institution.”

According to the ministry, “educational units must constantly provide parents with the necessary information regarding educational activities, possible program reorganizations or changes in the ability to supervise students during their stay in the educational space.”

“We are making every effort to ensure that the educational process continues and that students stay in educational institutions safely,” the Ministry of Education insists.

“We will continue a constant and open dialogue with the representatives of the representative trade union federations in pre-university education to find the best solutions based on the Law on Social Dialogue no. 367/2022. We remind you that the Ministry of Education is responsible both to the employees of the system and to millions of students and parents in Romania,” the ministry also reported.

Federation of Parents: “Effective communication and coordination is the key to avoiding chaos”

In a press release issued on Friday, the National Federation of Parents said it is encouraging parents in representative councils to support school management during the general strike by actively participating, particularly in school services, where they show their readiness/availability and solidarity with teachers .

In the context of the general strike that will take place from Monday, the National Federation of Parents is demanding the following measures:

• “Representatives of trade unions at the level of the educational unit should communicate with the educational units and parents through the principal. Directors of educational institutions during a general strike need to reorganize their activities taking into account the number of teaching staff participating in the strike.
• Principals will communicate relevant information through teachers or facilitators to parent representatives in classrooms. They need to be informed about the hours when children cannot be supervised so that they can develop a program to support families. We ask parents’ representatives in classes to convey the necessary information through parent groups.
• Parent representatives at the level of educational units are responsible for maintaining constant communication with principals, union leaders and parent representatives in classrooms, as this cooperation is essential for effective management of the situation and for ensuring a climate of trust and transparency.
• In cases where human security services are available, especially if they are paid for by parents, it is recommended to contact a security company to ensure increased attention and to draw up an action plan in cooperation with the principal and the parent representative at the school level.
• Effective communication and coordination are key to avoiding chaos and protecting children, especially younger students, from unforeseen situations.
• In this exceptional period, our federation encourages parents from parent representative councils to support the leadership of educational units not only through effective communication, but also through active participation (especially in school service, where parents show their desire/availability and solidarity with the teaching staff).
• We draw the attention of the government that in the conditions of a strike and a crisis in the education system, it is important to approach the problem responsibly and effectively and to provide an appropriate environment for learning.
• The government should allocate the necessary resources to improve the working conditions of teachers and the quality of education. Investments in school infrastructure, teaching resources and continuous teacher training can contribute to improving the education system.
• It is important that the government acts responsibly and tries to reach a consensus with all involved parties to solve the problems in the education system and ensure a stable and quality learning environment for our children.”

How will the school strike go?

It will be recalled that the education trade unions announced a general strike on Monday, May 22, starting at 8:00 a.m. after the negotiations between the Ministry of Education and the government regarding salary increases in education failed. According to the unions, the strike will take place in all schools where there are unions. In total, more than 100,000 teachers and other education workers will go on strike.

According to the president of the Federation of Free Trade Unions in Education (FSLI), Simion Hencescu, the general strike is supported by 71% of union members.

“According to the law, the strike is conducted by trade unions, we have nothing to do with others. We mean the members of the trade union, that is, out of 145,000 members of the FSLI, 105,000 are on strike,” he said.

Union representatives wanted to clarify that this is the first general strike that begins at the end of the academic year, stressing that the national exams, which are taken by graduates of classes VIII and XII, “may be disrupted” by the labor conflict.

In a document sent to the territory by the education unions and seen by edupedu.ro, the rules for the period during which the strike is taking place are as follows:

• “1. During a strike in an educational institution, all members of the participating trade union must be present; the message will be written “STRIKE”; we remind you that in accordance with Article 234 paragraph (1) of Law No. 53/2003 – Code of Laws on work, reissued, with the following changes and additions, “a strike is a voluntary and collective stoppage of work by employees”, and according to Article 153 paragraph (5) of Law No. 367/2022, strikers are present in the premises of the unit;
• 2. in a situation where children/students are present in the unit during a strike, they will be supervised by employees who are not participating in the strike;
• 3. Pedagogical workers who do not have hours (after the announcement of the strike and participate in the strike) are in the premises of the unit, some of them provide supervision of the heritage, according to the rules established by the strike committee. in the unit together with the employer;
• 4. all persons who enter the unit will have identification documents to prevent the entry of outsiders who may divert the promotion;
• 5. auxiliary pedagogical and non-pedagogical staff participating in the strike will remain at work, without carrying out their activities that ensure the protection of heritage.”

Requirements of trade unions in education:

• “Increasing the salaries of education workers, in accordance with the social significance of the work performed, based on the principle that the salary of a novice teacher should be no less than the average salary in the economy, the salary of the entire teaching staff, should be implemented gradually, in the report on the position, training , seniority and teaching degree;
• Establishing the rule of annual indexation of employees’ wages from budget funds to the level of inflation;
• Payment of additional hours performed by auxiliary teaching and non-teaching staff;
• Provision of allowances for working conditions for education workers;
• provision of rights provided for by current legislation and collective labor agreements (travel allowance, payment of work allowance, additional leave, monetary compensation for unused leave, etc.);
• Annual increase in investment in education, improvement of the material base and infrastructure;
• Abandoning the EduSal program and replacing it with a computerized payroll program managed and administered by the Ministry of Education.”