Protesters from CNTE movement head to Zócalo in Mexico City to hand over a letter to Sheinbaum; announce a pause or break (recess)
### CNTE's Persistent Protest: Education Workers' Struggle in Mexico City
The Coordinadora Nacional de Trabajadores de la Educación (CNTE), a major Mexican teachers’ union, has been at the forefront of a prolonged protest campaign in Mexico City. Over the past few weeks, the union has escalated its actions, culminating in a march to the Zócalo and a delivery of a letter to President Claudia Sheinbaum at the National Palace.
In May 2025, the CNTE established a large protest encampment in the Zócalo, attracting an estimated 20,000 teachers and professors from across the country. Despite dismantling the camp in early June, the CNTE vowed to continue their campaign, and in mid-July, they announced a new "mega-march" towards the Zócalo. Thousands marched towards the National Palace, aiming to deliver a letter of demands to President Sheinbaum.
The protests have garnered international attention, with the World Congress Against Neoliberalism in Education holding a solidarity rally in support of the CNTE's struggle. The union's grievances centre around labour rights and pension reforms, with a particular focus on the repeal of the 2007 ISSSTE Law, which, according to the CNTE, has significantly worsened retirement benefits for educators.
The CNTE is also demanding improved working conditions, job security, and a halt to what it perceives as neoliberal attacks on public education and social benefits. The union's sustained mobilisation has kept the issue of education workers' rights at the forefront of public debate in Mexico, demonstrating its organisational strength.
However, no new information about the President's response to these demands, meetings with authorities, or the status of the tripartite table with the Ministry of Public Education, the Ministry of the Interior, and the ISSSTE has been provided. The CNTE's leader, Pedro Hernández, has expressed hope that basic demands can be resolved during this recess period, but has not mentioned any new demands or the repeal of the ISSSTE Law.
The march is part of a "closure of the stage of struggle", but no new information about this aspect was provided. Hernández has also accused the authorities of not fulfilling their commitments, after having cancelled their meetings three times. He declared that today they will declare "a recess" to the actions, stating that after the May-June journey, they continue mobilising for local demands.
The CNTE's demands include the delivery of scholarships, discounts, and a salary increase. According to Hernández, only 184 scholarships have been delivered for the children of teachers, and he accused more than 12,000 teachers of not receiving promised discounts.
The CNTE's actions directly pressure President Sheinbaum, who campaigned on promises to repeal the ISSSTE Law but has yet to deliver. The union’s persistence underscores the gap between campaign rhetoric and policy action, potentially influencing broader labour and social policy debates in Mexico.
By linking their struggle to international movements against neoliberal reforms, the CNTE is expanding its influence beyond Mexico’s borders, framing local demands as part of a global fight for workers’ rights. The union's actions not only intensify the domestic debate over education and labour policy but also connect local struggles to international movements defending workers’ rights and social benefits across Latin America.
The education-and-self-development sector, specifically the Coordinadora Nacional de Trabajadores de la Educación (CNTE), has expressed concerns about labor rights, pension reforms, and working conditions in their ongoing protest against what they perceive as neoliberal attacks on public education and social benefits.
Politics in Mexico have been influenced by the CNTE's persistent struggle, as their demands for improved government response, including the repeal of the 2007 ISSSTE Law and the delivery of scholarships, discounts, and a salary increase, may shape the broader labor and social policy debates in the country.
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