Lithuanian teachers protest, demand pay rise

Around 1,000 teachers from across Lithuania protested here on Wednesday, demanding bigger budget allocation for education and a pay rise.
In the protest held by the Lithuanian Education Trade Union, teachers called for a consistent increase in budget spending on education, bringing it up to 6 percent of GDP by 2020.
According to the union, the 6 percent of GDP level is what recommended by the European Union and United Nations agencies.
Protesters also asked government to prepare a long-term program, ensuring a pay rise from 2015, and guarantee safe working conditions in educational institutions.
"We don't have financial capabilities to increase wages this year," said Lithuanian Prime Minister Algirdas Butkevicius after meeting representatives of the union. "But we have an agreement to prepare the long-term strategy not only in terms of pay rises, but in terms of structural reforms in the whole education system."
The spending on education in Lithuania accounted for 5.17percent of GDP in 2011, more than the 5.15 percent average in the euro area, announced the government citing data from Eurostat, the EU statistics agency.