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Catalan Educators Call Strike for First Day of School

They are demanding urgent July talks with the regional education department to press structural reforms and measures to boost Catalan use in classrooms.

Overview

  • The Assemblea Educativa de Catalunya decided at its seventh assembly in Sant Celoni on Saturday, July 11, to call a one-day strike on September 8, the first day of the 2026–2027 school year.
  • Representatives of USTEC, CGT, Intersindical, CNT and COS attended the meeting and were tasked to formalize the industrial action because those unions have the legal capacity to call a strike.
  • The AEC is demanding the Departament d'Educació convene an urgent negotiation table in July with the strike committee to agree structural changes to funding, staffing and classroom conditions.
  • Delegates also approved a manifesto to promote the use of Catalan in schools, citing that the language is not widely spoken in playgrounds and that students finish compulsory secondary education with lower-than-expected competence.
  • The move builds on months of mobilization — including 23 strike days earlier this year and roughly 1,335 schools signing a prior manifesto — and raises the risk of a disruptive start to term and further escalation if talks do not take place; the AEC will reconvene on September 19 to evaluate next steps.