The Organic Law of Education (LOU) only contemplates access to public education through competitive examination and temporary teachers defend their right to access a civil servant position with some advantage over applicants without experience. They have been asking for it for years, but the situation may worsen with the new regulation.
Juan Suárez, union leader of the Union of Interim and Substitute Teachers of the Canary Islands (INSUCAN) of Lanzarote, confirmed yesterday in statements made to this newspaper that the teachers of the Island will join this process of national demands.
"It is a movement that affects us all, including Lanzarote," he said. Today there was an assembly of INSUCAN members "to inform people of what is going to happen, to raise doubts and to plan a strategy to follow."
Double access route
The controversial LOE establishes, in its final provision number 12, that temporary and substitute education workers must pass an examination to access public education. Faced with this, the entire group of temporary and substitute workers at the national level is mobilizing. "In September there will be concentrations and other mobilizations throughout the national territory, and from October 15 to 20 there is a planned national strike," he confirmed.
According to Suárez, it is "a group of teachers who see how every year they are diminished and forced to go to an examination, and a double route that prioritizes their ability and merits is not sought; only one path is proposed, which goes through the examinations," he insisted. "No education law has bothered to say how teachers should access a stable job, but the current socialist government says that every teacher, to exercise the public function, must pass an examination; no government until now had been so involved against teachers. If this is approved in December, the double route that we have been demanding for so many years will be eliminated," he concluded.
Response from the Government of the Canary Islands in Lanzarote
For his part, the Island Director of Education, Juan Cruz, said in an interview with LA VOZ that he was not aware of these mobilizations but agreed to make a partial assessment from Lanzarote. He confirmed that "in Primary this year there have been numerous displacements among temporary and substitute teachers, because this year there have been examinations for primary, and proportionally more teachers who were outside the system have passed than those who were inside as temporary or substitute teachers." Despite the fact that the latter are scored for experience, 6 out of 10 places have been occupied by people outside the system and 4 by temporary workers. "This means that if there were 1,000 places, 600 new places will have to be relocated. The oldest ones will have a place, but in another place, and the last ones, who were summoned last year to do some substitution, will be left without work," he acknowledged.
He said that constitutionally the one who is working has the same rights as the one who finished the degree last year and passes an examination, even if he has no experience. "The constitution protects a free competition of opposition." What happens, said Juan Cruz, is that "the result of the competition this year has been very drastic; last year there were examinations for secondary and the result was more balanced."
He assured that in Lanzarote the increase in students has been accompanied by an increase in groups and teachers, both in Primary and Secondary. And he confirmed that at this moment all the teaching staff is assigned and that on September 1 all the teaching staff has joined their job.