The controversy surrounding the hiring of substitute teachers has once again taken center stage in the education debate. With the new school year approaching, several teachers' unions have focused on the schedule set by the authorities, which delays the arrival of many of these teachers to public schools just days before classes begin.
In Aragon, where the school year begins on September 8th for preschool, primary, and secondary school students , and on the 9th for high school students, unions are denouncing the fact that thousands of students will begin the adaptation period without a full teaching staff. Their complaint goes beyond the date: the unions link this problem to a very high rate of temporary employment and what they consider to be clearly precarious working conditions.
Aragon, epicenter of the protest over the incorporation schedule
In the Aragon region, the CCOO Teaching Federation has demanded that all substitute teachers assigned in the August 27th recruitment process begin their duties on September 1st, not September 7th as stipulated by the Department of Education. The union argues that this nearly week-long delay leaves schools severely understaffed during crucial planning periods.
According to details provided by the CCOO union, the measure would particularly affect preschool and primary schools , as well as early enrollment classrooms for two-year-olds. These levels concentrate many of the positions held by temporary staff, and therefore, the delay in their arrival has a direct impact on daily operations from the very first day of classes.
The organization warns that, if the schedule is not modified, up to 40% of substitute teachers in rural areas could be absent during that first week . This absence, they emphasize, slows the start of the school year, complicates the allocation of groups and timetables, and hinders personalized attention, especially in villages where each teacher assumes multiple roles.
The unions also point out that these days leading up to the start of the school year are not just about "showing up." They are days dedicated to developing lesson plans, organizing groups, coordinating teams, and preparing for classes . Without these teachers on staff from the beginning, schools are forced to improvise and redistribute tasks among the rest of the personnel.
Union agreement: September 1st as the reference date
The CCOO union's request is not an isolated one. ANPE AragĆ³n has also demanded that substitute teachers assigned through the first round of regular hiring be allowed to start at their schools on September 1st, at the same time as the rest of the teaching staff. In their view, it makes no sense for those who will be taking on tutoring or core subjects to arrive practically on the spot.
ANPE emphasizes that the first days of September are crucial for course planning : timetable creation, departmental meetings, inter-grade coordination, and internal school organization. They argue that delaying the return of a significant portion of the teaching staff until the 7th hinders the smooth start of the school year and creates an organizational bottleneck.
The CCOO AragĆ³n Teaching Federation agrees with this analysis and emphasizes that preparing for the start of the school year requires time and a significant presence in schools. They insist that this is not a minor detail in the calendar, but rather an issue that impacts the quality of education, both for students and for families who must balance work and the adjustment period.
CSIF also echoes this sentiment , denouncing the recurrence of the same situation as in previous years: substitute teachers know their assigned posts and begin working with little room for maneuver, while students arrive in classrooms without knowing for sure who their tutor will be. This uncertainty creates unease among families and adds pressure on school leadership teams.
Together, the three organizations make a common demand: that the Administration put in place the necessary procedures so that the temporary teachers from the first call can start the course on September 1 , working side by side with the rest of the faculty from the first day of preparation.
Impact on families, students and staff
The controversy surrounding the start date is not merely an administrative matter. The CCOO union points out that the first week of the school year is precisely when Aragonese families try to balance their work schedules with their children's adjustment to school . In this context, the absence of a significant number of teachers complicates the organization of groups, classroom instruction, and communication with families.
The unions warn that the most likely scenario, if the calendar is not modified, will be incomplete teaching staff who will have to take on more class hours, more groups, or additional tasks to temporarily cover absences. This will lead to an excessive workload for the staff already assigned to the school, precisely during the days when much of the course's structure is defined.
The overload isn't limited to pedagogical matters. Organizations point out that many of the tasks teachers take on in those first few daysāsuch as preparing documentation, reviewing materials, or getting spaces readyāare distributed unevenly when there's such a high percentage of substitute teachers missing , especially in smaller rural schools.
For the temporary teachers themselves, the situation represents a further tightening of the screws on precarious employment. The late hiring, the organizations emphasize, means less time to plan commutes, find housing, or balance work and personal life . In some cases, teachers arrive at the school just one day before the students start classes, preventing them from adequately preparing.
This situation also affects the continuity of educational projects. With constant staff changes and teachers joining at the last minute, unions warn that it is much more difficult to provide stability to school plans and medium-term programs , which affects both the quality of learning and the school climate.
Structural temporaryity and the demand for greater stability
The complaints about the start date are part of a broader problem that is repeated in different regions: the high rate of temporary employment in public education . Unions point out that in regions like Aragon, structural temporary employment can reach around 40%, a figure they consider unacceptable for an essential public service.
Organizations such as CCOO, ANPE, UGT, CSIF, and Suatea have long been demanding a substantial reduction in this percentage, aligning it with Law 20/2021 , which sets a maximum of 8% for temporary staff in public administrations. According to these groups, the reality is still far from achieving this goal.
The unions insist that temporary contracts should not be used to fill structural or permanent needs in education systems. When one in four positions, or even more, depend on temporary appointments, they believe this is being misused, with negative consequences for both teachers and students.
As an alternative, they are calling for increased public sector job openings, the stabilization of recurring positions , and a review of assignment procedures to prevent substitute teachers from learning their placements with so little time before the start of the school year. They are also demanding that appointments no longer be so closely tied to competitive examination schedules that extend almost until the beginning of classes.
Meanwhile, unions warn that this temporary employment is often combined with part-time and reduced-hour contracts , increasing the sense of instability. They assert that the combination of these factors fosters a perception of precariousness that hinders teacher retention and the establishment of stable teaching teams in schools.
The debate is no longer just about whether there are enough resources, but about how they are distributed and under what conditions they are linked to temporary staff. Unions agree that improving job security and bringing forward the start date to September 1st would be important steps to ensure a more robust school year and, ultimately, more consistent educational support from day one.
The start of the school year has once again raised the same questions: a large number of substitute teachers, who arrive late to schools and are subject to successive temporary appointments, clashes with the need to offer a planned, stable, and equitable public education for all students. Union demands point to a change in the model that prioritizes stability and preparation time over last-minute adjustments.