Costa Rica Teachers Strike at One School Over Pay Shortfall Since February
COSTA RICA · EDUCATION
Key Facts
- —The country Costa Rica is a Central American country of about 5 million people with free, compulsory public schooling. Its constitution says public education, universities included, must get at least 8% of GDP a year.
- —The background Public school teachers are paid every two weeks by the Ministry of Public Education (MEP). Part of their pay covers planning lessons, paid time for preparing classes and marking.
- —Why now On Thursday 1 October, teachers at a secondary school in Concepción de La Unión, in Cartago province east of San José, came to work but stopped teaching.
- —What happened About 30 staff joined the stoppage. Fifteen teachers say the planning part of their pay has been missing since the school year began in February.
- —The numbers One teacher put the shortfall at up to ₡200,000 (about US$451) a month, depending on seniority. Another said it is a quarter to a fifth of salary.
- —What it means for you This is a stoppage at one school, not a national strike. The school’s management has called pupils to class as normal.
- —Still open When the money will be paid. The ministry says its planning department is handling the case but has given no date.
Costa Rica teachers at a public secondary school in Concepción de La Unión, Cartago, stopped teaching on 1 October. They say part of their pay has been missing since February.
About 30 staff at the Colegio Ingeniero Alejandro Quesada Ramírez joined the stoppage, the newspaper Diario Extra reported on 2 October. They say they will continue until the Ministry of Public Education (MEP) answers them in writing.
What the teachers say is missing
The dispute is over planning lessons. These are paid hours for preparing classes, writing and marking tests, making teaching materials and meeting pupils’ learning needs.
Teachers often do that work outside class time, one teacher told Diario Extra. “Since February and up to now we have stopped receiving this part of our salary,” she said.
Fifteen teachers are directly affected, according to a teacher quoted by Diario Extra. They stress that they are not asking to be paid for work they do not do.
Maureen Vega, an English teacher, told the news site El Observador how the gap arose. Teachers with 44 weekly lessons receive four more for planning, but in earlier fortnights they were paid for 40 instead of 48.
After complaints in May, about 14 or 15 teachers had their pay partly corrected, she said. “They paid us four instead of eight,” she added.
Laura Cáceres, a French teacher, said many colleagues have gone 16 fortnights without full pay. “Roughly a quarter or a fifth of the salary is not being paid,” she told El Observador.
Vega estimated the loss at up to ₡200,000 (about US$451) a month, depending on years of service. All dollar figures here use the 1 October close of 442.98 colones per US dollar.
How the ministry has responded
The teachers say they took the problem to the MEP’s human resources department and other offices, and wrote to the minister. The answers they received cited a lack of budget and set no payment date.
The MEP told El Observador that its planning department is dealing with the case. The school’s management called pupils to classes as normal.
Vega said some teachers were warned they could face disciplinary action and lose a day’s pay for not teaching. The teachers also worry that incomplete pay will reduce their aguinaldo, the year-end bonus of one extra month’s salary.
A tight education budget
The stoppage comes as the government plans to trim the ministry’s budget. The 2027 budget bill gives the MEP ₡2.752 trillion (about US$6.21 billion), 0.7% less than in 2026, Diario Extra reported.
That would equal 4.9% of GDP.
Education Minister Leonardo Sánchez links the cut to falling enrolment. Public schools expect about 873,000 pupils in 2027, some 140,000 fewer than in 2022.
The birth rate is falling fast. The national statistics institute INEC projects 9.48 births per 1,000 people for 2026, against 11.55 in 2020.
Costa Rica spends about US$5,226 a year per pre-university pupil, Diario Extra noted. The OECD average is roughly US$12,400 to US$13,000.
“140,000 fewer students is no small thing,” Sánchez said. Education researchers at the National University answered that schools still lack buildings, equipment and teachers.
Pay problems have touched teachers elsewhere too. On 25 September a fault in the Treasury’s payroll system delayed some teachers’ fortnightly pay until 28 September, La Teja reported.
What comes next
The teachers said they would lift the stoppage once they receive a written commitment to pay. They hope the money arrives with the next fortnightly payday.
The case does not mean Costa Rica’s teachers are on a national strike. Neither report names a union behind the stoppage.
It does show how a budget shortfall can reach individual payslips, even where the constitution protects education spending.
Frequently Asked Questions
Are Costa Rica’s public schools on strike?
No. The stoppage reported on 1 October involves about 30 staff at one secondary school in Concepción de La Unión, Cartago. Other schools are working normally.
What are planning lessons?
They are paid hours in a teacher’s salary for preparing classes, writing and marking tests and making materials. The affected teachers say this part of their pay has been missing since February.
How much money is involved?
One teacher estimated the shortfall at up to ₡200,000 (about US$451) a month, depending on years of service. No official total has been published.
What has the Ministry of Public Education said?
The ministry told El Observador that its planning department is handling the case. The teachers say earlier answers cited a lack of budget and gave no payment date.
Sources: Diario Extra, teachers to keep up strike over pay owed since February, 2 October 2026, El Observador, La Unión teachers stop work over 16 fortnights of pay arrears, 1 October 2026, Diario Extra, 2027 education budget and enrolment, 1 October 2026, La Teja, Treasury payroll incident, 26 September 2026, Constitution of Costa Rica, Article 78. All retrieved 2 October 2026.
Editorial responsibility: Matthias Camenzind, Editor-in-Chief · Editorial standards · Report an error
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