It is about 59 primary schools in Gothenburg that have a deficit and where the administration’s latest forecast is that there could be 500 fewer annual workers by the autumn. It mainly concerns student assistants and leisure leaders, but according to the municipality, there are also some cases of teachers with subject qualifications, administrators and speech therapists.
“Will gape blankly”
In the first place, the administration wants to solve the reduction through, for example, retirements and substitutes that are not filled.
– There will be empty gaps between the ranks. This means that teachers will have to do more, with fewer student assistants there will certainly be more threats and violence, everyone who needs extra help will not get it and the risk is that we will not catch students who need to be caught, says Andrea Meiling, chairman of Sweden’s Teachers Gothenburg.
Above all, it is schools in the Northeast, Southwest and in Hisingen that are lagging behind, and the union sees a risk for larger groups and reduced goal fulfillment. In total, the elementary school administration has around 9,000 annual workers, so the reduction is approximately five percent.
The background, according to the municipality, is, among other things, the reduction of temporary state grants, such as the temporary so-called covid money. In total, you will receive 110 million less in state grants this year compared to last year.
– When we receive temporary government grants, it is difficult to manage, then there are effects like this. It’s clear that it’s noticeable, when you’ve gotten used to higher staffing levels and more people in the business and there are fewer, it’s definitely noticeable, says Kristin Perem, head of HR department.
Decision on Tuesday
The current schools that have a deficit are now developing action plans. On Tuesday, May 23, the primary school board will make a decision on which measures will be implemented.