Romanian Teachers Go On Full-Blown Strike As Of May 31

He said the decision was made following a meeting with leaders of all union federations in the education sector and the protests will be joined by teachers in both pre-university and university education.

Romania’s Government has announced drastic spending cuts, including a 25% reduction in public sector wages and a 15% cut in pensions and social benefits.

Teachers in Romania have staged repeated protests over wages and, most recently, had planned protests over the country’s new education bill. The Government said earlier this year it plans to sack about 15,000 teachers as of September.

Following authorities’ announcements of austerity measures, all unions have threatened Greek-style protests and 40,000 people are expected to attend an ample rally in Bucharest next Wednesday, May 19.

The country’s president, Traian Basescu, announced the drastic spending cuts last week and explained Romania would have otherwise had to raise its main taxes.

The International Monetary Fund said it recommended a series of „balanced” measures to lower Romania’s growing budget deficit, but the authorities in Bucharest decided to rely almost entirely on public spending cuts.