A group of parents in France took a formal stand over a persistent problem: teachers are not being substituted when they are absent, which disrupts student learning and challenges the right to education. The initiative, organized by the #onveutdesprofs platform, urges the Government of Emmanuel Macron to take decisive action to reduce unfilled substitute positions. A lawyer for the group, Joyce Pitcher, emphasized to Agence France-Presse that the goal is not financial gain but rather accountability from the state and a practical solution to the recurring absence of substitutes. Parents described feeling powerless as classrooms go without coverage.
In June, the group plans to present its allegations before an administrative court. The lawyer outlined a plan to begin by gathering families and documenting the hours when substitutes were not available. Each family may pursue a claim against the state, seeking compensation of 10 euros per hour for a missed lesson due to a teacher’s withdrawal from a middle school, and 50 euros for primary school sessions. Additional amounts, up to about 500 euros, may be sought to cover moral damages and the costs of final review classes. These claims are intended to ease the financial burden on families rather than impose new costs on the state.
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Parents involved in the platform describe a school year marked by chaos and broken promises. Education Minister Pap Ndiaye acknowledged in January that public education had 15 million hours of instruction that went uncompensated. Pitcher noted on France Info radio that teachers have the right to be absent due to illness or other qualifying reasons, yet the core issue remains unchanged: the lack of substitutes continues to disrupt schooling.
This initiative marks the second consecutive year for the platform to push these cases. During the prior year, around 1,500 files were opened and about 127 led to compensation claims in administrative courts. The difficulty in replacing teachers is a challenge rooted in France and reflected in several European countries, tied to broader shortages of qualified teaching staff.
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One consequence of wage structures in the region is the impact on the teaching workforce. A teacher’s early career salary has declined in relative value, shifting from about 2.3 times the minimum wage in 1980 to roughly 1.2 times today. This shift reduces the perceived economic attractiveness of a teaching career and contributes to staffing difficulties. In response, some education administrations explored rapid recruitment methods, sometimes described as quick “dating” approaches, such as 10 or 15-minute introductory calls with potential hires. These methods sparked controversy by raising questions about proper screening and suitability for teaching roles.
In late April, President Macron announced a salary increase for teachers ranging from 100 to 230 euros. While this is a meaningful uplift, it falls short of the roughly 10% increase promised during the presidential campaign a year earlier, a gap that inflation could narrow in practical terms. The government also proposed an additional around 500 euros per month for teachers who accept overtime or are needed to cover gaps caused by absent colleagues. Such measures are aimed at stabilizing the teaching workforce and ensuring more consistent classroom presence.