Romanian teachers protest new salary law and demand fair wages

In September 2025 Romania enacted Law 141/2025, raising the mandatory teaching load from 18 to 20 hours per week and changing the calculation of overtime pay. The reform cut the hourly rate by about 50%, lowering a teacher’s extra‑hour salary to 22 lei, and triggered an estimated loss of 14,000 teaching posts, accounting for nearly half of the total reduction in state payroll.

Union leaders have organised mass demonstrations in Bucharest. On 8 September 2025 teachers marched from Piața Victoriei to Cotroceni, and on 17 June 2026 about 20 000 educators gathered in front of the Government and Parliament, later marching to Alveola Parc Izvor. They demanded “salarii corecte” (fair wages) and warned the new law “condamnă profesorii la sărăcie”. Statements from the Federation of Education Unions read, “Destul! Educația cere respect!” and condemned recent austerity measures as “nepăsarea guvernului”. The unions also threatened to boycott the upcoming national exams scheduled for June 2026 if their demands are not met.