The Balearic Islands Government will invest €12.6 million during the 2026-2027 academic year to improve state-subsidized private education and bring it in line with public education. This was announced on Thursday by the Minister of Education and Universities, Antoni Vera, at a press conference. Among the main measures is a reduction of two teaching hours for teachers over 55 years of age, which will benefit approximately 1,200 teachers starting next year. In addition, a salary equalization for vocational training teachers with that of secondary school teachers was announced, with an allocation of €426,000.

The Balearic Islands Ministry of Education and Universities has convened the Roundtable for Subsidized Private Education for Thursday, March 5th at 12:30 pm at the Ministry's headquarters. This has led to the cancellation of the planned demonstration by unions and delegates scheduled for today, February 24th, outside the Ministry. The agenda includes a review of the Framework Agreement and the incorporation of new working conditions starting in the 2026/2027 academic year. According to the Ministry, this meeting reflects the Government's commitment to continue improving the working conditions of teaching staff in subsidized private education. This sector has already seen measures implemented during this legislative term, such as an increase in seniority bonuses (sexenios) with an impact of 3 million euros, and salary increases of 2.2% and 2.2% in 2021, with an estimated impact of 15 million euros over two years. Other measures have also been implemented, such as reducing teaching loads, gradually decreasing student-teacher ratios in preschool, and increasing resources for addressing diversity.

The unions representing workers in the Balearic Islands' state-subsidized private schools – USO, STEI, FSIE, UGT, and CCOO – have warned that they will call for protests if the Ministry of Education and Universities does not review and fund the outstanding commitments from the last three years and does not establish a timetable for signing a new agreement. In a joint statement, the organizations recalled that on February 3rd they requested an urgent meeting of the State-Subsidized Private Schools Roundtable to address these issues. They assert that, to date, the Ministry has not proposed any meeting to review the outstanding commitments of the 2023 state-subsidized private education agreement, nor to negotiate a new collective bargaining agreement. Inequality with public schools

Unions have warned that the improvements achieved by public schools since the beginning of this legislative term have increased socio-labor inequalities with state-subsidized private schools. "The gap between the two sectors is widening alarmingly, which directly affects the well-being of staff and the quality of education offered to students," they emphasize. If the Minister of Education, Antoni Vera, does not convene the State-Subsidized Private Schools Roundtable, the unions have announced that they will organize various actions and demonstrations to pressure the administration.

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The Balearic Ministry of Education and Universities reached an agreement in principle this Friday to implement the 2.9% salary increase that was frozen during 2020 and 2021 for teachers in state-subsidized private schools, with effects also on subsequent years. The proposal, presented within the framework of the State-Subsidized Private Education Roundtable, anticipates paying approximately 15 million euros in two phases: the first during 2026 and the second throughout 2027, always subject to budgetary availability. Furthermore, the agreement includes a clause that would allow for further increases in percentages if financial resources permit. The Balearic Federation of Education of the USO union, the largest teachers' union in state-subsidized private schools, has accepted the Ministry's proposal but has demanded "real guarantees" that the 2.9% increase will actually be paid. The USO union has welcomed the government's modification of its initial offer, which it considered "absolutely unacceptable," and has insisted that the payments scheduled for April 2026 and March 2027 include a firm commitment to be included in the budget.

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While during the time of the left-wing coalition government, Palma was divided into as many as eight school zones, currently there are only two. This is part of the path towards a single zone, a policy advocated by the Balearic Government to guarantee what it considers "free choice of school" for families. There are significant differences between these two zones regarding the availability of public and private schools. The distribution of these schools is partly determined by the urban planning policies of the Francoist development boom of the 1960s, 70s, and subsequent years. Zone A includes neighborhoods in the North district—such as Secar de la Real, Establecimientos, Son Espanyol, Son Sardina, Caso Capiscol, Campo Redondo, Buenos Aires, Plaza de Toros, Son Oliva, Amanecer, El Olivo, the urban and rural areas of La Indioteria, and Archiduque—and in the West district—Bellver, Teulera, Son Espanyolet, Son Dureta, Santa Catalina, Jonquet, and Son Vida—as well as half of the Central district. In this area, the presence of private-subsidized schools is practically equivalent to that of public schools. There are 25 private-subsidized schools (46.29% of the total), compared to 18 primary schools (33.33%), 9 secondary schools (16.66%), one combined primary and secondary school (1.85%), and one combined primary and secondary school (1.85%). Overall, public schools represent 53.69% of the total.

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The union has criticized the Balearic Government this Friday for its "inaction" in improving the working conditions of employees in state-subsidized private schools. According to the union, since the beginning of the legislative term, the Ministry of Education "has called into question the framework agreement signed in March 2023 with the Minister of Education of the previous government, the Socialist Martí March," and "in fact, thanks to that 'less than ideal' agreement, the payment of the second bonus has been implemented, albeit in practice, in the schools." The STEI union criticizes that, despite the current Government's promises, "no proposals have been seen to improve the working conditions of state-subsidized private school employees." As a form of protest, union representatives and permanent staff from the sector will hold a demonstration this Tuesday, from 10:00 to 11:00 AM, in front of the Parliament of the Balearic Islands. Salary debt

It also mentions the debt stemming from the 2.9% ruling, which benefited public sector employees and which STEI requested be paid simultaneously to both public and subsidized private schools. "The subsidized private school committee has not met even once to discuss the recovery of that 2.9%, despite repeated requests from STEI." Meanwhile, public school teachers have already received 65% of the debt owed to them in their September paychecks and have an agreement to receive the remainder in February 2026. Furthermore, the union indicates that the 2023 agreement stipulated the start of negotiations "to introduce improvements to lighten the burden," but "there has been no progress." Regarding the six-year service increments, although they have been implemented gradually, "once the halfway point of the legislature has passed, this issue has not been addressed." The STEI union urges the Regional Ministry of Education "to convene the subsidized private school negotiating table imminently and to put in writing an agreement that satisfies the demands of subsidized private school teachers, moving from words to action."

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The USO union held a demonstration this Tuesday outside the Ministry of Education to demand the reinstatement of frozen salaries in 2020 and 2021, as well as an island bonus. The majority union in private schools and for public religion teachers has demanded the signing of an agreement guaranteeing the reinstatement of the 2% salary in 2020 and the 0.9% salary in 2021, as well as the island bonus.

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Charter and public schools are financed with public funds and, in theory, have the same rights and responsibilities. This argument, repeated by the Regional Minister of Education, Antoni Vera, has served to justify the increase in financial and personnel resources in charter schools. Both must enroll students according to the criteria and objective point systems established by the Regional Ministry. However, according to the 2024 Education System Report (ISE), prepared by the School Council of the Balearic Islands, the sociodemographic differences between the two educational models are significant. In primary education, for example, public schools account for 67.9% of students of foreign origin, while charter private schools only accommodate 18.6%. The remainder are enrolled in private schools. For example, between the 2018-2019 and 2022-2023 academic years, public schools added 800 students of this profile, compared to the 228 that the private schools added.

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The Governing Council has approved an agreement that allows, "on an exceptional and temporary basis," to increase the teaching load of teaching staff at state-subsidized schools in subjects considered difficult to cover within ESO (Compulsory Secondary Education), FP (Vocational Training), and Baccalaureate (Baccalaureate).

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Green t-shirts have invaded Palma's Plaza de París. More than 200 people (500, according to the organizers), including family members, teachers, and students, gathered at the initiative of the "La pública no se tocar" (Public Education Is Not To Be Touched) platform to protest the progressive disappearance of school places promoted by the Ministry of Education. "The education and future of children and young people cannot be played with. We don't want them to have to go to overcrowded schools. They have the right to go to their neighborhood school. We don't want families to be forced to send them to private schools they haven't chosen, with ideologies they don't share. They have the right to a quality public education, and equity for all students," the protesters demanded. Along the same lines, they have demanded a "strong, accessible, and sufficient" public education network to meet the social needs of each area, "as required by Article 104 of the Balearic Islands Education Law (LEIB)."

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