Since the beginning of the year, more than 1300 teachers have retired and forecasts indicate that, by the end of 2023, more than 3500 teachers will enter retirement, warned the National Federation of Teachers (Fenprof) today.
According to the balance made by the trade union organization in a statement, “more than 1300 teachers retire in the first months of the current year, it is expected that more than 3500 will retire in 2023”.
It is the highest number of the last decade, surpassed only by the more than 4500 retirements recorded in 2013.
“The problem is not the retirement of so many teachers, as this departure was predictable, in the case of teachers and educators who have been working for over 40 years”, says Fenprof.
On the other hand, the union organization manifests itself, above all, concerned with the lack of attractiveness of the profession and with the small number of students who, every year, leave Education courses to become teachers.
Between the two factors, Fenprof warns of a “very serious crisis of lack of professional teachers in schools, which will still get worse until the end of the decade, if the government policies for the sector do not change profoundly”.
“There is only one way to stop the early departure from the profession, recover those who have already abandoned and attract young people to training courses: to value a profession that, increasingly, has lost its attractiveness”.
Since September, negotiations have been taking place between the Ministry of Education and trade union organizations in the sector on different matters with an impact on teachers: in March, the negotiation process on competitions was concluded, without an agreement, and the career progression of teachers is now under discussion most affected by the freezing of service time.
However, the measures presented by the guardianship do not satisfy the teachers' representatives, who do not abdicate the recovery of the entire period of service (six years, six months and 23 days), as well as the end of vacancies for access to the 5th and 7th echelons.
“Teachers' unions are not satisfied with this situation, marked by a ministerial posture that does not respect those in office, does not attract young people to the profession and, thus, jeopardizes the future of a Public School that wants quality. ”, emphasizes Fenprof.
As of Monday, the informal platform that brings together nine trade union organizations, including Fenprof and the National Education Federation, will start new district strikes that start in Porto and end on May 12, in Lisbon.
A national teachers' strike and a demonstration are also scheduled for the 6th of June and the final assessment strike is still on the table.
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