The Xarxa 0-3 and the CCOO, UGT and STEI education unions are calling for the urgent creation of a dedicated negotiating table for the first cycle of early childhood education, covering children from 0 to 3 years old.

The demand comes as the Balearic Parliament considers a PSIB-PSOE amendment to the Capital Law that seeks to give the proposed negotiating structure a legal basis, establish stable public funding for the sector and improve working and educational conditions in the islands' escoletes.

The organisations say the first cycle of early education needs a stable framework rather than decisions that depend on individual budgetary measures.

What the proposed negotiating table would address

The organisations want the new forum to provide a permanent space for discussions about the 0-3 sector.

Among its proposed objectives are:

• guaranteeing genuinely free access to the service

• ensuring the financial sustainability of public and complementary escoletes

• improving and equalising working conditions for professionals

• addressing differences between workers doing comparable jobs across the islands

The organisations argue that these issues require coordinated negotiations involving the administration and the sector rather than separate decisions affecting individual centres or groups of workers.

A demand that has been building for years

The Xarxa 0-3 and the unions describe the negotiating table as a long-standing demand from the sector.

They want the 0-3 stage to be formally recognised as an educational stage in its own right rather than primarily as an assistance or childcare service.

The organisations say this distinction matters because the staff working in the sector are responsible not only for caring for young children but also for their education and development during the first years of life.

Working conditions are a central issue

Improving working conditions is one of the main reasons behind the unions' demand.

The organisations argue that the quality and long-term sustainability of early childhood education depend on being able to attract and retain qualified professionals under appropriate employment conditions.

They also describe parts of the workforce as being in precarious employment conditions and say that the sector has historically been treated differently from other educational stages.

Different collective agreements

One of the problems identified by the organisations is the fragmented system of collective bargaining.

According to the sector, workers in the Balearic 0-3 system are currently covered by different collective agreements.

These include the XIII State Collective Agreement for Centres Providing Assistance and Early Childhood Education and, in Menorca, the III Island Collective Agreement for 0-3 early childhood education centres.

The organisations argue that different agreements contribute to unequal conditions among professionals performing similar work.

The proposal follows months of mobilisation

The demand for a dedicated negotiating framework comes after a series of protests by workers in the 0-3 sector during September.

CCOO, UGT, STEI and the Xarxa 0-3 have been calling for better salaries and working conditions, lower ratios and an autonomous framework covering the sector.

Earlier in September, the organisations also called for a specific negotiating table and announced further mobilisation across Mallorca, Menorca and Ibiza.

In Ibiza, workers have participated in demonstrations as part of the wider campaign.

A separate debate over regulation

The dispute is taking place alongside a broader discussion about how the 0-3 sector should be regulated and financed.

Earlier this year, representatives of unions and private-sector education organisations also objected to proposed changes affecting the operation of escoletes, including measures concerning mealtimes and staffing.

Those organisations argued that additional requirements could increase costs for centres, while the Education Department said the proposed measures were intended to provide more support for children during mealtimes.

This is separate from the current demand for a dedicated negotiating table.

Salary discussions have already produced agreements

There have also been developments on pay.

In July, unions and employer organisations in the publicly funded private 0-3 sector announced an agreement aimed at improving pay and achieving greater salary parity between teaching staff in different types of centres.

The agreement included proposed increases taking effect from September 1, subject to the Education Department assuming the terms and providing sufficient budgetary funding.

The current demand for a dedicated negotiating table therefore goes beyond salaries alone and seeks a permanent framework for discussing the wider structure of the sector.

The Balearic Government has already announced 0-3 measures

The regional Education Department has also announced measures affecting professionals in the first cycle of early childhood education.

The Government has said it is working on improvements to employment conditions for 0-3 professionals and has previously highlighted salary-equivalence measures for the 2026-27 academic year.

The unions and Xarxa 0-3 nevertheless argue that individual measures are not enough and that the sector needs a stable negotiating mechanism.

What happens next?

The immediate political question is whether the PSIB amendment to the Capital Law receives sufficient support.

The Xarxa 0-3 and the three unions have called on all political groups to support the proposal and move from political declarations to the creation of an actual negotiating structure.

Until that happens, the proposed dedicated table remains a demand rather than an established body.

The organisations say their objective is to create a permanent framework capable of addressing funding, working conditions, staffing and the educational role of the 0-3 stage across the Balearic Islands.

The wider issue for Ibiza

For Ibiza, the debate is particularly relevant because the island's early-years education system forms part of the wider challenge of recruiting and retaining education professionals.

The current campaign is therefore not simply about creating another administrative forum. The unions and Xarxa 0-3 are arguing for a broader change in how the first three years of education are funded, regulated and recognised.

For now, the proposed negotiating table remains under discussion, with its future depending on the parliamentary process and the response of the Balearic Government and other political groups.