Catalan teachers strike on first day of school over staffing as PISA data excluded

School year begins with strikes across Catalonia

More than 1.6 million students started the 2026–2027 school year in Catalonia on 8 September as teachers held walkouts across the region. In Barcelona, between 1,800 and 5,000 demonstrators marched between Placa Urquinaona and Placa Sant Jaume behind a banner reading "Contra l'emergencia educativa. Seguim als carrers". In Lleida, about twenty protesters occupied tracks 1 and 2 of the high-speed AVE line before 08:30 for thirty minutes until the Mossos d'Esquadra cleared the area and identified three participants. The regional Education Department reported a strike participation rate of 9.3% across Catalonia by 11:30, whereas calling unions estimated turnout between 20% and 30%.

Union demands and government negotiation timetable

The strike was called by education unions including Ustec-Stes, CGT, Intersindical, CNT, COS, and the Assemblea Educativa de Catalunya. Union representatives cited heavy workloads, high student-to-teacher ratios, and an insufficient allocation of specialized staff, such as speech therapists and counselors. Spain maintains an estimated ratio of one educational counselor per 750 students, compared to the European recommendation of one per 250.

Union leaders warned that actions will continue if demands on staffing and climate control in classrooms are not resolved.

We start the school year as we finished it, with a strike.

Education Minister Esther Niubó announced that the sectorial negotiation table will convene on 21 September to address working conditions and long-term education policy. Niubó confirmed that the Catalan administration will not alter its previous wage proposal, which offered a monthly increase of 600 euros through 2029, a deal rejected by teachers in a validation vote before the summer.

PISA assessment dispute and sample invalidation

The return to classrooms followed the publication of results from the 2025 OECD Programme for International Student Assessment (PISA). Results for Catalonia were deemed invalid for official comparisons because the student exemption rate reached 23.2%, well above the 5% threshold recommended by the OECD. Across the rest of Spain, test results indicated a loss of learning equivalent to one full school year in reading comprehension and more than half a school year in mathematics over three years.

We will not assess the data because they are not comparable.

Niubó emphasized plans to rationalize technology and screen usage in classrooms while promoting reading comprehension. Union organizers have scheduled their next general assembly for 19 September to coordinate further potential mobilizations for October.

Political pressure in the Catalan Parliament

Opposition parties including Junts, PP, Vox, and CUP demanded the resignation of Niubó and called on Catalan President Salvador Illa to appear before the Catalan Parliament to account for the PISA assessment error. The regional executive previously dismissed the number two official in the Education Department in an attempt to address administrative responsibility. Government spokesperson Sílvia Paneque stated that Illa remains at the disposal of parliamentarians, though no date has been set for his appearance. Investiture partners ERC and Comuns criticized the executive for failing to resolve union disputes during the summer, with ERC spokesperson Ester Capella calling the opening-day strike a bad sign for the administration.