On Monday, the 30th of January, there was a meeting held between the Latvian Trade Union of Education and Science Employees (LIZDA) and the Ministry of Education and Science. During this meeting the two sides reached an agreement for the wage increase schedule to include teachers of all levels – from kindergartens to higher education.
This was announced in an interview to LTV programme Rīta panorāma on Tuesday, the 31st of January, by LIZDA manager Inga Vanaga.
She said discussions were heated the most in regards to including higher education teachers on this list, but both sides heard and met each other halfway: «But now higher education teachers will have a wage increase schedule.»
«These and other processes will be discussed today [the 31st of January],» said Vanaga.
She added that the reached agreement will provide all teachers a balanced workload starting with the 1st of September. Workload balancing automatically means creation of additional vacancies, but for this purposes there is a separate vacancies reduction plan. The state budget project also lists funding to support young, studying teachers.
The head of LIZDA said at this Tuesday’s meeting helped put ‘the last stops and commas’ to reach an agreement on all demands raised in the last strike.
As previously reported, the ministry and the trade union have plans to continue discussing teachers pay increase schedule and workload balancing guidelines this week. Sides will continue working on the final document. Minister of Education and Science Anda Čakša previous mentioned that the ministry and the trade union have similar opinions of the main objectives and demands voiced during the last strike.
Čakša and Vanaga stressed during the meeting held on the 24th of January that both of their represented institutions have a common goal – quality education for all students in all schools around Latvia. But it is not possible to do this without raising wages and the overall prestige of the profession.
The two sides have agreed on future steps and terms to help raise the lowest wages for teachers. The first step is scheduled for the 1st of September 2023, the next – for the 1st of January 2024. From then on steps will continue every January until the year 2027.
LIZDA, threatening with an indefinite strike, reached an agreement with the government last November on changes to teachers’ wages and workload-related topics.
The agreement also states that starting with the new school year teachers in Latvia will transition to a 36 hour work week, where 65% of time is allocated towards contact lessons and 35% of time is allocated towards teachers’ other duties. The lowest teacher pay is set at EUR 1 080.
Also read: About 6 000 workers of education institutions sign up for indefinite teachers’ strike in Riga