A significant victory for the solidarity movement is the decision by the Piraeus Administrative Court of Appeals to grant the request for a temporary stay of the potential suspension of teacher Chrysa Hatzoglou. The decision, as noted by the Teachers' Activist Movement In a statement issued on May 12, 2025, this is the result of mass mobilization, public outcry, and the pressure exerted through hundreds of resolutions passed by unions and assemblies.
Chrysa Hatzoglou, who had been suspended from her job due to her union activities following a political decision by the former Minister of Education, is temporarily returning to her job and her students until the main case is heard in court. This is a temporary but significant victory against a government strategy that, according to the text of the announcement, seeks to impose disciplinary proceedings and dismissals on teachers who resist or challenge the evaluation policy.
The Teachers« Struggle Movement points out that the government continues to promote the »criminalization« of union activity, with new prosecutions such as that of teacher Sofia Kapsali —who requested a school nurse for a student—and the kindergarten director in Paiania, who was seeking approval for a new class and is accused of »insubordination.”.
The next stops on the race
The movement’s call to action is not limited to defending Chrysa. Two crucial events are scheduled for the coming period:
- Monday, May 20, 2025➤ 9:30 a.m. – Hearing of Sofia Kapsali’s case before the Attica First-Instance Disciplinary Council (24 Xenias Street)➤ 12:30 p.m. – Rally at the Propylaea against the dismissal of Dimitris Antonios and for his reinstatement
- Thursday, May 23, 2025➤ Protest against the prosecution of the kindergarten teacher in Paiania
No room for complacency – The government is not invincible
Despite the success of the temporary suspension, the Teachers« Struggle Movement warns that the government has a deliberate plan to impose dismissals based on performance evaluations, and often ignores or overturns the decisions of the »independent” judiciary. It calls for vigilance and the strengthening of collective action through general assemblies, strikes, and protests.
«We will not be broken by prosecutions and disciplinary actions. No colleague should be suspended. Let’s put an end to the climate of terror and fascist tendencies in schools and society. All prosecutions must be withdrawn. The policy that seeks to keep teachers, workers, and young people subjugated, without rights or freedoms, must be defeated!» the statement reads.
