The Association of Scientific Research Fellows (ABIC) today expressed concern about the merger of the Ministry of Science, Technology and Higher Education with the Ministry of Education, considering it a “political sign of devaluation” of these areas.
“It is with great apprehension and concern that the Association of Scientific Research Fellows views the recent announcement of the composition of the new Government, in particular the merger of the Ministry of Science, Technology and Higher Education with the Ministry of Education. Beyond the complexity of the issues that both ministries cover, the political sign of devaluation of these areas by bringing them together under a single umbrella is unquestionable”, says ABIC, in a statement.
Education, higher education and science will once again be under the same supervision in the structure of the XXIV Constitutional Government and the new Ministry of Education, Science and Innovation will be led by economist Fernando Alexandre.
In the last social democratic government, led by Pedro Passos Coelho, those areas were already under the same supervision, but, in 2015, António Costa separated the sectors into two ministries: Education and Science, Technology and Higher Education.
The Association of Scientific Research Fellows states that the last PS governments “did not solve the problems of scientific workers and science”.
In this sense, he states that the PSD/CDS government, which is now taking office, to resolve these problems “cannot ignore the effect of the Research Fellow Statute (EBI) on the existing labor reality in science and higher education”.
“A normalization of precariousness and lack of social and labor rights that cuts across several professional layers and will not end until the EBI ends and all scholarship contracts are replaced by employment contracts”, explains ABIC.
The association considers it urgent to put an end to “the precarious situation in which 90% of researchers work, the extremely high costs of taxes, fees and bribes, the lack of access to unemployment, sickness and parental benefits, the absence of holidays, Christmas and meals, the total lack of access and progression in the scientific career, the public financing of private companies under the guise of innovation and integration of doctorates in companies, the devaluation of fundamental science and the mercantilist vision of scientific research” .
ABIC recalls that it will be present “on the streets demanding and fighting for the rights of scientific workers”.
The prime minister-designate, Luís Montenegro, and the ministers of the XXIV Constitutional Government take office on Tuesday and the secretaries of State two days later, with the debate on the Government program scheduled for the 11th and 12th of April.
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