Thousands of teachers have taken over the center of València this Friday in a massive demonstration called during the indefinite strike of Valencian public education teachers, in a new show of strength by the teaching staff after several days of conflict with the Ministry of Education.
The protest has brought together teachers, students, and families in a mobilization that has marched through the Valencian capital while the standoff between the unions and the regional government continues, with no agreement yet to call off the strikes. The mobilization occurs after negotiations between both parties ended without understanding and with a commitment to resume talks next Monday.
A protest during an indefinite strike
The Valencian education conflict entered a new phase this week with the call for an indefinite strike by teaching unions, who demand labor improvements and question the regional government's educational policy.
Friday's protest has been the moment of greatest public visibility of the conflict so far, with a large mobilization in the center of València and the support of the Sindicato de Estudiantes (Student Union), which had called for support for the protest day.
The strike remains active after the failure of the latest negotiations between unions and the Ministry, which did not manage to reach an agreement that would allow an end to the conflict.
Pressure mounts on the Generalitat
The demonstration reinforces the pressure on the Valencian Executive in a conflict that has escalated during the week and which maintains one of the main social fronts open for the Generalitat. The unions maintain their demands and the teachers' strike while the regional department keeps the negotiation channel open.
With the image of thousands of people in the streets of Valencia, the education conflict gains a new public dimension while all eyes are on Monday's meeting, on which it will largely depend whether the indefinite strike heads towards a solution or if the standoff intensifies even further.