Health crisis at school: why the unions are calling for a new strike on Thursday

They are exasperated by the waltz of health protocols linked to Covid-19.

Health crisis at school: why the unions are calling for a new strike on Thursday

They are exasperated by the waltz of health protocols linked to Covid-19. Several unions launched a new call for a strike on Thursday in schools, colleges and high schools after last Thursday's large-scale movement, to demand "strong responses" in the face of the "chaos" caused by the health crisis, and massive investments. in education.

The unions FSU, CGT Educ'action, FO and SUD Education, as well as the FCPE, the first organization of parents of students, and the high school student movements FIDL, MNL and La Voix lycéenne called in a press release to "continue the mobilization", by engaging "in a new day of action on January 20, including by the strike". This mobilization "must lead to a massive strike on January 27 as part of the interprofessional appeal" for wages and employment, they added. For these organizations, “the chaos generated by the management of the health crisis deserves strong responses, beyond the commitments made by the Prime Minister and the Minister of National Education” on January 13.

Teachers and other National Education staff led a major strike last Thursday, after which the government promised them 5 million FFP2 masks and replacements, including the recruitment of "3,300 more contract workers. " and the use of additional lists (candidates who passed the competition and were not recruited, but were well ranked). The government also announced that the evaluations of "mid-CP" would be "postponed to a deadline which remains to be defined", and that a possible postponement of the baccalaureate specialty tests, scheduled for March, would be studied.

Believing that these announcements "are not sufficient", the unions call for "immediately to postpone the specialty tests", to "cancel the mid-CP evaluations", to "create all the positions necessary to ensure replacements, beyond of the use of additional lists" and "to provide schools and establishments with protective equipment in sufficient numbers, well beyond the volumes announced".

They believe that the school also has "an urgent need for investment". They ask for "a collective budget to allow massive recruitment and reduce the number of people in the classes", and call for "increase the salaries of the staff".

Sud Education had already called on Friday for a strike on January 20, while the SNUipp-FSU, the first primary union, had indicated that there would be "different forms of mobilization" in the weeks to come. The call for mobilization for Thursday is however less broad than for January 13, the teacher unions SE-Unsa, Snalc and Sgen-CFDT not having joined the movement this time.

Other modes of action are also recommended for Thursday, the SNUipp-FSU having in particular proposed to the personnel "to mobilize everywhere in front of their schools during the meridian break by displaying 'My school cracks' and by broadcasting the images of this happening on social media".