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The All Teachers Union (STOP) confirmed this Friday that it will maintain the strike of teachers and staff during the first days of school, in protest at the lack of security conditions in some schools.
Last week, the union’s national coordinator said that he had issued a strike notice from September 14-17 as a way to “pressure the ministry to act,” but said a five-day survey would be conducted. professionals to later make a decision.
The results of the survey, which asks whether strike warnings should be maintained in light of the safety conditions in schools, reveal that 70% of those surveyed agree to continue the protest action.
“STOP therefore decided to maintain the strike warnings to allow education professionals to be in schools where they clearly believe that there are no conditions for the strike,” confirmed the coordinator, André Pestana.
The academic year begins between September 14 and 17, in a context of the covid-19 pandemic that forced schools to implement a set of safety regulations, defined by the Ministry of Education and the General Directorate of Health.
However, André Pestana highlights that not all educational establishments are managing to ensure the necessary conditions. “There are contrasting situations in the different schools. There are schools where peers feel relatively safe, but in others where, in fact, peers feel unsafe and the survey also expresses that sentiment, ”he said. It is for these professionals that the strike scheduled for the first days of the academic year is directed, he said.
For the national STOP coordinator, the problems invoked last week to justify the strike warning remain 10 days later and three days from the start of classes, that is, the number of students per class, the lack of operational assistants and the situation of professionals in risk groups.
Regarding the number of students, André Pestana reports that, in several cases, the classes maintain the same size and, therefore, it will not even be possible to ensure the physical distance of at least one meter.
On the other hand, the lack of personnel, a problem that claims to be old in schools, continues to occur in a year in which the role of these professionals is even greater, and some establishments have not seen their teams strengthened. “Unfortunately, in some schools it will be very complicated, due to the effort and professionalism of the operational assistants, maintaining security conditions,” he lamented.
Finally, STOP questions the solution found for professionals in risk groups for covid-19, who will not be able to opt for teleworking and will have to resort to sick leave. “It seems that here there is clearly negative discrimination for education professionals,” she considered.
