Protests in France have prompted the government to act: additional teachers will be sent to schools
France's education minister presented an "emergency plan" to replace absent teachers in lycées.
Following mass protests by school students in France, the government announced an emergency plan to address the teacher shortage. According to it, an additional 3,000 educators will be brought in to replace teachers.
French Education Minister Edouard Geffray presented an "emergency plan" to replace absent teachers in lycees. The minister also authorizes rectorates to hire more teachers on a contract basis than provided for in the 2026 budget.
In the French education system, nearly 21,000 secondary school educators work as substitute teachers during the academic year. Approximately 10,000 of them work on a permanent basis, while the rest work on a contract basis.
This government decision responded to one of the demands of upper-grade students. However, trade unions assessed the initiative to bring in additional teachers as a "hasty measure" that is not a systemic solution to the staffing shortage in the education system.
According to data, during the student protests that continued across France on October 8, 504 people were detained, and 48 law enforcement officers were injured. The largest unrest occurred at Place de la Bastille in Paris. On Thursday, more than 70,000 people participated in protests across the country.
On October 7, French Prime Minister Sebastien Lecornu's government stated that by the end of the month it would announce measures aimed at taking into account the complaints raised in the student protests.
According to survey results, the majority of French people support the protests of upper-grade students, but also want the demonstrations to stop.
