Ministry and ZMOS to Prepare Joint Memorandum on Education Sector

Bratislava, February 20 (TASR) – The Education, Science, Research and Sport Ministry and the Slovak Towns and Villages Association (ZMOS) will prepare a joint memorandum to govern their relationship in the education sector, according to the conclusions of a joint meeting held by Education Minister Peter Plavcan (a Slovak National Party/SNS nominee) and ZMOS representatives on Monday.

The document will include measures relating to powers and financing, for example.

“The memorandum between the Education Ministry and ZMOS was high on the agenda of our talks. Within the memorandum we want to address all the common problems that concern us,” said Plavcan. Experts representing the two sides should meet in the near future to fine-tune the memorandum’s wording.

ZMOS officials also discussed an increase in teachers’ salaries with the minister. “We aren’t reluctant to increase salaries in the education sector, as they were already adjusted last year. We were accommodating [then], and they were adjusted as of the beginning of this year, when we were accommodating as well. We’ve confirmed to trade unions that we’ll support a 6-percent increase if they manage to negotiate this in collective bargaining as of January 1, 2018,” said ZMOS chairman Michal Sykora.

The education minister last week heralded his intention to push for an increase in salaries for all teachers by law as of September. ZMOS stated that it would comment on the law and come up with its own proposals and arguments.

The two sides also discussed a change in powers relating to schools run by the regions so that all schools would come under the remit of the ministry again. “We find this unacceptable, as it would be an interference in powers, an interference in all provisions of public administration reform as such,” added Sykora. School trade unions are pushing for the aforementioned measure, and they delivered a petition signed by 78,030 people concerning this to the minister last June.