Education Trade Unionists Warn: Measures Will Lead to General Chaos

The Federation of Free Trade Unions in Education (FSLI) and the "Spiru Haret" Federation are sounding a harsh alarm, accusing the Ministry of Education and the Romanian Government of taking "chaotic and irresponsible" measures in the rush to reduce the budget deficit, measures that will seriously affect the pre-university education system and will generate massive layoffs, school mergers and the migration of teachers from the system.

• "Worse than during the Băsescu-Boc period"

According to the unionists' statement, the effects of the decisions proposed by the Ministry of Education are "worse than those taken during the Băsescu-Boc tandem", when education was already heavily affected by the austerity measures. Unionists accuse lack of transparency and consultation: "It is outrageous that these measures were discussed behind closed doors, and when we asked for explanations we were told not to follow rumors.”

• Increasing the teaching norm, "the most irresponsible measure”

Unionists harshly criticize the idea of increasing the teaching norm by 2 hours for teachers and by 4 hours for teachers with a first degree and over 25 years of experience, saying that the decision is made based on simplistic mathematical calculations, without a real impact study: "This measure will lead to job cuts, increased commuting and the loss of qualified teachers, who will migrate to other fields.” At the same time, they contradict the statement that the teaching norm in Romania is the lowest in the EU, claiming that it is, in fact, above the European average.

• 700 schools to be merged

Another point criticized is the intention to merge approximately 700 educational units, a measure that will lead to: the abolition of positions and chain layoffs; professional uncertainty for thousands of teachers; an increase in school dropouts, especially in rural areas; an increase in the number of students in the classroom, with a direct negative impact on the quality of the educational act.

• Unions demand a halt to the measures and impact studies

Union organizations are asking the Minister of Education to suspend any decision until a national impact study is carried out, in order to understand the real effects of these policies. In the absence of this gesture, they warn that the dissatisfaction will turn into a revolt and do not rule out massive protests or a request for the resignation of the Minister of Education:

"Neither students nor teachers are to blame for the budgetary debauchery! Education should not pay the bill for government incompetence." The unionists' call is clear: education must not become a victim of budget adjustments, and public policy decisions in this area must be based on reality, studies and social dialogue, not on cold accounting figures and the rush to close budget gaps. If the demands are not taken into account, the fall of the 2025 school year could begin under the sign of conflicts and instability.