The Educational Assistants (ATE) of Mallorca explode against precariousness: "We've had enough"

PalmThe Technical Educational Assistants (ATE) of Mallorca have gathered in front of the Parliament in a mobilization that has brought together about a hundred people to denounce the labor situation of the collective and demand improvements in their professional, social, and economic recognition. The protest is part of a coordinated campaign with Menorca and the Pitiusas, and has used pale pink as a common symbol to give visibility to demands that, as they have emphasized, directly affect the quality of educational care in the centers.

During the concentration, the participants have displayed banners with slogans such as “Yes, yes, yes: the ATEs are staying here”, “If you don’t listen, September will speak”, “Without ATEs there is no inclusion”, and “Less talk and more action”. The slogans have been accompanied by shouts and chants that have sought to highlight the importance of their work within the educational system.

The workers have insisted on the “essential” nature of their task, recalling that ATEs are a key figure in guaranteeing attention and support for students with specific educational support needs (NESE), facilitating their inclusion and the right to education on equal terms. As they have emphasized, without this figure many centers would not be able to adequately cater to the diversity of students.

The group has read a manifesto in which they have expressed their discontent with the current situation and the lack of institutional response. “We have been waiting for years, years of being patient. We respect administrative timelines, but we have received broken promises. Commitments that disappear. Words that do not turn into rights. Do you really think we can sustain this situation?”

Precarious conditions

The workers have defined their limits: “Today we make it clear: we have reached our limit”. In the same vein, they have described the reality they live as a situation of work overload and lack of tools to correctly carry out their work. “We have an enormous workload, without enough tools to provide adequate attention, and that affects the students, the present and the future of inclusive education”, it was stated in the manifesto.

The ATE have also denounced “a way of acting that we cannot tolerate: empty words, lack of respect” and have criticized the lack of political will to respond to their demands. “Those who are responsible cannot hide”, they said, referring to the Ministry of Education.

The collective has assured that working conditions have worsened in recent years. In this regard, they have called for concrete and structural measures to reverse the situation and guarantee job stability. “We demand real commitments, actions, and that we be heard”, they emphasized, insisting on the need for a professional reclassification, stable 12-month contracts, fixed assignment to centers, and improved working hours for older workers, as well as recognition of the hazard pay.

Finally, the ATE have insisted that the mobilization does not stop: “This is not an end, it is a beginning. We call for sustained mobilizations. Recognizing today's work is recognizing work that is essential for the entire educational community”. The mobilizations will be replicated in Menorca on May 28, in front of the Territorial Delegation of Education in Maó, and in Ibiza on June 4, in front of the Territorial Delegation of Education of Ibiza and Formentera.