The PP-Vox pact would have left 877 teaching positions without the Catalan language requirement this academic year

PalmIf soagreement between the PP and Vox Had the measure been implemented this year to allow teachers without the Catalan language requirement to access civil service positions, 877 positions would have been exempt from this accreditation. These are all the positions that the Ministry of Education has categorized as "very difficult to fill," which are precisely the ones the agreement contemplates exempting from the language requirement. The measure was first proposed in July, during the 2025 budget negotiations. At that time, it was stated that, although the requirement would not be demanded initially, a period would be given later for those interested to demonstrate it: once they had already obtained the position. The breakdown by island shows that this year the measure would have affected four positions in Mallorca, 138 in Menorca, 549 in Ibiza, and 186 in Formentera. In any case, these figures may vary from year to year, since the number of places considered very difficult to fill is dynamic and depends on the needs of the education system at any given time. A resolution is sufficient to modify them.

The agreement aims to eliminate the requirement of knowing Catalan to access hard-to-fill positions and other low-demand civil service categories, such as caretakers, assistants, and cleaning or maintenance staff. The measure will be introduced through the law for accelerating strategic projects and also includes lowering the required grade for obtaining the Catalan certificate (B2 and C1) for students who have studied abroad for a year.

This debate comes at a time when the teacher shortage has already forced schools to accept professionals who do not speak Catalan, especially to fill vacancies on substitute teacher lists. Several schools have received teachers from other regions who do not speak Catalan to ensure that classes are not left without staff, a situation that highlights the difficulties in guaranteeing linguistic normalization in classrooms. Here, an element comes into play that no one doubts, but also no one can prove. There are many schools where the minimum requirements decree is not being met. However, in many cases, it is only in effect on paper. The lack of professionals who are fluent in the language has an impact on it.

This has a more evident impact in preschool and primary school, because most schools have a language project based on the role of the teachers, who act as language role models. For many students, school is the only place where they feel connected to their own language, and teachers are their link to it.

Right-hand tune

Vox spokesperson Manuela Cañadas emphasized that the agreement was reached after lengthy negotiations, while PP deputy spokesperson Marga Durán recalled that the proposal had already been agreed upon in exchange for the budget, but had not been formalized until now. The objective is to fill all hard-to-reach positions, especially in Ibiza and Formentera, and to allow exceptions in areas where Catalan is not a requirement for public service, without affecting public service.

Education unions have reacted critically to the agreement between the PP and Vox. The organizations agree that the underlying problem is the lack of teachers and that the solution lies in improving working conditions and strengthening the education system, not in lowering language requirements.

Integration tool

STEI argues that the Catalan requirement is "important," given that it is an official language and also a tool for integration and social support within the education system. However, they point out that there are already substitute teachers working without accreditation because positions need to be filled, and they demand that the Administration facilitate these teachers' access to the required level through further training. The union recalls similar situations in the 1980s and 1990s and calls the proposal "absurd" because it "plays into Vox's hands." SIAU and Alternativa also reject the agreement, arguing that the debate is framed from an ideological rather than an educational perspective. SIAU criticizes the initiative as stemming from Vox's obsession with eliminating Catalan from education, while Alternativa calls for "funding measures to attract teachers, not language cuts," and demands increased investment and structural improvements to the education system.

Finally, the UOB union warns that the measure could "open the door to eliminating the Catalan language requirement for tenured civil servants in the Balearic Islands." The organization accuses Vox of using the "excuse" of hard-to-fill positions to advance the elimination of Catalan-language schools and criticizes the proposal for conveying the idea that teachers in the Islands are not sufficiently prepared to do their jobs.