CTERA has called for a national teaching strike this Monday and the start of classes in the city and other provinces is in danger

With criticism of the government of Javier Miley, the Confederation of Education Workers (CTERA) announced this Thursday 24 hour national teaching strike, so the start of classes this Monday, February 26, is in jeopardy. The union showed itself The minimum wage is awaited to be set, with an official call at the national labor ministry next Tuesday. Secretary General Sonia Alesso said, “The call for the meeting was deliberately delayed. Everyone knew when the school year started.”

In an urgently called press conference, the union member informed Congress that Voted “unanimously” to go on strike, Furthermore, on Monday there will be mobilization in all the provinces and on Tuesday the 27th they will appear at the hearing that the national government has just called for Wednesday.

“We have been demanding a call for the joint venture since January. We have held a meeting, but the call was not given. Beyond the regional aspect, we have increased the urgency and need to send funds which were Provinces and teachers were withdrawn irregularly” Alesso added.

A key point of claims is that the transfer of Teacher Incentive Fund, Prevented by Xavier Miley, and the National Educational Programme.

“Next month, teachers across the country are going to be losing money. And we’re not talking a little bit. We’re talking about compensation funds, FONID, and in the case of the fifth hour there’s a special event: several Teachers have been informed that this will not continue. The General Secretary said in this regard, “Apart from being displaced from their jobs, they will lose some part of their salaries.”

In that sense, he stressed that the findings of the labor hearing will be taken to the union plenary next Wednesday. “Depending on claims not being met, “The continuity of the action plan will be analyzed”Alesso said. Those from the field were confident that Tuesday’s meeting probably would not determine teachers’ salaries, but would be a first approach in negotiations.

The force measures will not affect Buenos Aires province, where classes are scheduled to start on March 1.

CTERA confirmed the strike, arguing that the suspension of the Tuition Incentive Fund (FONID) and the Pay Inequality Compensation Fund has compromised 10% of the salaries of more than 1,650,000 workers.

“The damage has already been done,” Alesso said. He said, “This did not happen in any other government.” We have moments that we have discussed, but this is the first time since the existence of these funds that they will not be received by the jurisdiction and therefore the teachers will not collect them,” he continued criticizing Miley’s management. .

Union member drew attention in discussion of objections “Many Surprising Legal Issues.”

“The first is the schedule: the time for signing is till 5:30 pm, the call is at 6:00 pm. The second is the agenda: they call us to ‘form a negotiating commission’. It has already been formed. No There is not much agenda put forward” said the General Secretary.

He continued to warn the Education Secretary led by Carlos Torrandel and the Labor Secretary led by Omar Yassin: “We are going to ask that the state comply legally and precisely with a formal call that explains the program, the curriculum. , Topics to be covered. Discussion and simulation”.

And he concluded: “Not only are we not going to get a raise, but we’re also going to have teachers paying 150,000 pesos less. We’re not talking small in terms of brutal inflation.”

Despite CTERA’s calls, the Education Ministry of the City of Buenos Aires and 17 teaching unions signed the agreement last week for increases, bringing the starting net salary to $871,332 and with seniority to $1,132,152.

For this reason, “all schools will remain open to welcome students at the preparatory and primary levels”, starting on Monday, the City confirmed.

Teachers’ strike seems to be announced. Earlier in the week, Alesso had announced that he considered the start of classes “complicated”, after President Javier Miley withdrew from the national partnership and suspended FONID. Despite this, the government called on unions to negotiate minimum teacher wages.

Miley said that “we don’t like setting prices” and stressed that “education is up to the provinces, they have to decide.” However, the educational portfolio pointed out bugle That “the provinces create equality, the nation sets the destination.”

In any case, CTERRA will be present next Tuesday to “hear the proposals”, although he stressed it would be “a terrible blow” if the joint ventures no longer work.

Last Tuesday, the four minority teaching unions that make up the CGT – the Argentine Private Teachers Union (Sadop), the Argentine Teachers Union (UDA), the Association of Technical Teaching Teachers (AMET) and the Confederation of Argentine Educators (CEA) –, A strike was called which was suspended this Thursday following the call of the national government.

Unions warned that they hoped “this is not a delaying move” and that they would remain in a “state of alert”. After confirmation of CTERA strike, we will have to wait for its solution.

For its part, the Casa Rosada confirmed that it is evaluating the possibility of declaring education an essential service, which would require a guarantee of 75% of active work and thus largely neutralize union opposition. . Roberto Barradel, general secretary of the United Union of Education Workers of Buenos Aires (SUTEBA), responded that the measure was “absolutely unconstitutional.”

As established in the academic calendar, the districts where classes must start this Monday are eight: Buenos Aires city, Córdoba, Corrientes, Entre Ríos, Formosa, Mendoza, San Luis and Santa Fe.

On Tuesday, for its part, La Rioja will do it, and on Thursday, Santa Cruz.

The school year is expected to restart on Friday, March 1 in Buenos Aires, La Pampa, Tierra del Fuego and Tucumán.

Meanwhile, fourth classes will begin in Chaco, Chubut, Misiones, Neuquén, San Juan and Santiago del Estero on Monday, while Rio Negro is scheduled to start a week later.

Catamarca, Jujuy and Salta have already officially postponed the start of the school year, due to uncertainty over money not being transferred to the provinces from the teacher incentive fund. They will do it on the 4th.