The strike by teachers and staff against the next State Budget began today in just a few schools, but the Union of All Education Professionals (Stop) says that membership is expected to increase at the end of the week.
At around 11 am, the national coordinator of Stop, the union that called for the strike, only had an indication of the closure of an educational establishment: Escola Básica 00/2 de Azeitão did not open its doors today and students were left without classes.
«At this moment I haven't received any feedback yet, but participation should increase over the days. Many schools will start at the end of the week or at the beginning of next», national coordinator of Stop André Pestana told Lusa.
Teachers and non-teaching workers are once again affected by another strike, which will end on November 29th, this time against the State Budget for 2024 (OE2024).
For André Pestana, last week's «political earthquake», with the resignation of the Government, raised doubts regarding the carrying out of the strike: «When the President of the Republic accepted the resignation, people thought, for some time, that it would be expected there was no vote on the OE and this generated some doubts in schools about whether the strike would continue».
The union met over the weekend to evaluate the possibility of suspending the initiative, but decided to maintain the strike.
Stop criticizes the OE2024 proposal for the education sector, considering that «it does not effectively invest in public schools, nor in the dignity of all those who work and study there».
In addition to the two and a half week strike, STOP is calling “on November 29th for everyone to participate in the national concentration and protest that will take place in front of the Assembly of the Republic, on the day of the final vote on the budget. It will be a demonstration that the fight will continue».
«The OE continues to be voted on and discussed and, therefore, it makes perfect sense to continue fighting so that the OE reflects a reinforcement in public schools. These strikes also serve to warn that, whoever comes, whether from the right or the left, this fight will not stop», added André Pestana.
Last month, André Pestana explained that the strike was decided between more than 100 strike committees and will be organized in each school and group, as in the previous academic year, through strike funds.
In addition to the strike, a national demonstration is also scheduled for November 18th, between the Ministry of Education and the Assembly of the Republic.
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