Striking teachers block road to Mexico City airport

Teachers protesting education reform blocked the main road to Mexico City's international airport on Thursday, forcing travelers to hitch rides in police trucks or walk long distances to their terminals, AFP reports. An airport spokesman said some 2,500 teachers took part in the protest while 2,000 police officers were deployed to contain the demonstration and help travelers catch their flights by taking them on the back of pick-up trucks. Airlines were waiting for passengers as long as possible or offering to place them on later flights without charging them extra, the spokesman said, adding that airport operations were not affected by the demonstration. It was the second time in two weeks that teachers sought to block access to the airport as part of protests against the new education law, which was given final approval by Congress this week. Some 4,000 passengers were affected on August 23, but the airport spokesman said authorities were better prepared this time and that fewer people would face delays. Thousands of teachers have led protests in the capital for the past two weeks, but they failed to block passage of President Enrique Pena Nieto's reform, which seeks to break the power of unions over education and require educators to undergo evaluations to get jobs.

Teachers protesting education reform blocked the main road to Mexico City's international airport on Thursday, forcing travelers to hitch rides in police trucks or walk long distances to their terminals, AFP reports. An airport spokesman said some 2,500 teachers took part in the protest while 2,000 police officers were deployed to contain the demonstration and help travelers catch their flights by taking them on the back of pick-up trucks. Airlines were waiting for passengers as long as possible or offering to place them on later flights without charging them extra, the spokesman said, adding that airport operations were not affected by the demonstration. It was the second time in two weeks that teachers sought to block access to the airport as part of protests against the new education law, which was given final approval by Congress this week. Some 4,000 passengers were affected on August 23, but the airport spokesman said authorities were better prepared this time and that fewer people would face delays. Thousands of teachers have led protests in the capital for the past two weeks, but they failed to block passage of President Enrique Pena Nieto's reform, which seeks to break the power of unions over education and require educators to undergo evaluations to get jobs.

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