Italian school staff strike on 16 October as student protests spread to several cities
Teachers, heads and administrative staff stop work on Friday, 16 October, under two separate union strikes. The day follows clashes on Thursday, 15 October, and the occupation of dozens of schools from Milan to Naples.
Two strikes on one day
Teachers, school heads and administrative, technical and auxiliary (ATA) staff are stopping work on Friday, 16 October 2026, under two separate union calls. The Ministry of Education and Merit made the strike day official in its notice n. 60, issued on 9 October 2026, which covers the school and research sector. The main action is a national strike called by the SISA union, the Sindacato indipendente scuola e ambiente, which covers the whole day and includes both permanent and temporary staff. A second, narrower strike was called by USB Pubblico Impiego Scuola and applies only to schools in the province of Livorno on the Tuscan coast, where teaching staff, educational staff, ATA workers and heads are all affected.
What the unions are asking for
The core demand is pay. SISA is seeking a 20% salary increase, which it considers necessary to offset the erosion caused by inflation, along with measures against precarious work. The platform goes further. It asks for a single role for teachers, with identical hours and pay at every level of schooling. SISA also wants an extraordinary hiring plan for ATA staff, which it judges too small for the paperwork load and the supervision of school buildings. New rules for voluntary retirement are also on the table, aimed at teachers and ATA staff with certain levels of civil disability and at least thirty years of service and contributions.
Student protests join the strike
Student mobilisation runs alongside the staff action. According to Il Messaggero, the marches echo recent protests in France and Spain and target the cost of living, the so-called 'scuola caserma' (a cap on foreign students) and the poor condition of school buildings. The student campaign is also known as the 'No Meloni Day'. Processions were called across Italy, and Il Messaggero reported that Turin recorded the strongest tensions in the morning. Verona was also reported to have seen rubbish bins set on fire, with a protest in Rome as well.
From clashes to strike day
The sequence began with the ministry notice on 9 October. The first clashes came on Thursday, 15 October, when windows were smashed, fire extinguishers emptied and computers destroyed. The damage in one primary school alone reached thousands of euros, and dozens of schools were occupied from Milan to Naples. Il Giornale also flagged possible disruption to school bus services on the day. Those events set up the strike on Friday, 16 October.
- Ministry issues strike notice n. 60 for the school and research sector
- First clashes: smashed windows, emptied extinguishers and destroyed computers; dozens of schools occupied from Milan to Naples
- National SISA strike covers the whole day, with a USB strike limited to schools in Livorno province
How schools will operate
No school closes by decree. Each one depends on how many staff have chosen to strike. Where participation is low, lessons go ahead as normal. Elsewhere, schools may delay entry, dismiss pupils early or shorten the timetable. In extreme cases, when supervision and pupil safety cannot be guaranteed, the headteacher can order the closure of the whole building. Families are advised to check the electronic register, the school website and official circulars for the latest decisions on their own school.
