Teachers went on strike in Lisbon
2023.01.14 13:48
Teachers went on strike in Lisbon
By Ray Johnson
Budrigannews.com – In one of the largest protests in recent memory, tens of thousands of Portuguese teachers and school staff took to the streets of the capital, Lisbon, to demand better working conditions and higher wages, dealing a fresh blow to the government of Portugal.
Protesters urged Education Minister Joao Costa to resign during the peaceful demonstration, which was organized by the Union of All Education Professionals (STOP). They waved banners and yelled slogans.
Teachers on the lowest pay scale typically earn less than 2,000 euros per month, and even teachers on the highest pay scale typically earn less than 1,100 euros ($1,191.08) per month. In light of the current crisis in living costs, protesters contend that wages are currently too low.
Maria Duarte, a 62-year-old history teacher, said as she waited for the march to begin, “Teachers deserve a fair salary because we’ve worked all our lives… we’ve never been corrupt and we’ve never stolen like the bad example that is unfortunately coming from politicians.”
In an election that took place a year ago, the Socialists, led by Prime Minister Antonio Costa, won an absolute majority in parliament. However, the government has had a difficult time since then, with 13 ministers and secretaries of state quitting their positions. Some of these ministers and secretaries of state have resigned because of allegations of previous misconduct or questionable practices.
“We want this to have consequences, so it would be beneficial for the leaders who are watching this demonstration to carefully consider what they will do next; Aitor Matos, a math teacher, stated, “we want serious measures to be taken.”
The 47-year-old claimed that teachers were frequently assigned to schools far from their homes and were “constantly losing income.”
Some protesters wore black to express their sadness over the state of education and claimed that the government has done little to improve their situation.
Lucinda Lopes, a 52-year-old special needs teacher, stated, “We have to be respected.” They can’t take away what little we have because they must give us what is rightfully ours.
Since the beginning of December, teachers all over the country have been on strike, preventing many students from attending classes. On Friday, the minister of education stated that he might compel some teachers to return to work by imposing minimum services.
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