Today’s protest focused on salaries, although that probably won’t solve the teacher shortage.
In Hungary, hundreds of teachers, parents and students gathered once again in front of the Ministry of the Interior in Budapest. The demonstrators, who have been mobilizing for almost a year and a half already, assure that they are not giving up… but still do not know who will benefit from the 32.2% salary increase promised by the government. This will be decided solely by school principals.
“I wouldn’t be surprised if they remove bonuses. So far, all increases have affected bonuses, because they have a special feature: they can be removed without any explanation” explains Edit Simkó, former teacher.
The government’s aim is to get student salaries to 72% of the average graduate salary, but unions say this would require a quicker correction. Since January 1, a trainee teacher can earn 1,370 euros instead of 1,040 euros the previous year. But this amount remains lower than the Romanian salary.
Today’s protest focused on salaries, although that probably won’t solve the teacher shortage. In Hungary, the problem is so big that primary school teachers can teach high school until the 8th grade.