Parents in Brașov are protesting on Thursday against staff cuts in nurseries and are seeking guarantees for the children’s safety

Parents in Brașov are organizing a peaceful protest on Thursday, September 24, outside the County School Inspectorate, dissatisfied with staff cuts at nurseries recently taken over by the Ministry of Education system. The families say the measure could affect the children’s safety and are asking authorities to specify how many childcare workers will remain in each group.

The protest is being organized by Adriana Nedelea and Szakacs Cătălina, who recommend that participants come without their children. Parents complain that a single childcare worker could end up supervising two groups, each with 20–23 children, meaning 40–46 toddlers in the care of one person.

The grievances have also been expressed through an online petition addressed to Brașov City Hall, the County School Inspectorate and the Ministry of Education, which has gathered thousands of signatures. Parents are asking for answers about how supervision will be organized and who will be responsible for the children’s safety.

The Brașov County School Inspectorate says that the nurseries’ previous staffing structures, approved by the local council, exceed the staffing regulations applicable in education. Spokesperson Valentin Bucur says the number of non-teaching positions cannot be supported by current funding, but that the institution is seeking solutions to transfer surplus staff to other educational institutions so that no layoffs are made.