AOb: minister juggles with money
Education is not getting anywhere with a minister who keeps shifting education money. That says AObchairman Liesbeth Verheggen. She refers, among other things, to the ministry's cash drawer with the money to reduce the workload in primary education. “Juggling money doesn't help education. It does not solve the real problems. This requires serious investments. ”
Picture: Type tank
Education minister Arie Slob sent last week his answers to questions about the workload resources to the House of Representatives. In March this year, a week before the major education strike of the AOb, made the minister together with education union CNV announced that the money will be brought forward so that schools have more to spend from next school year.
Greenhouse slide
This school year, 270 million euros was available. In the coming school year, this would initially be an amount of 277 million euros, but that amount has been increased to 333,5 million euros. "Because it concerns a cash drawer, the total amount of workload resources remains the same," the minister wrote to the House.
Verheggen: "The minister refers to the spring memorandum, but we have seen that the 430 million euros that was planned for 2021 are shifted to 2023. It is highly uncertain whether this money will actually come, given that there will be new elections in 2021."
Committed
The members of parliament also wanted to know from Slob why the AOb was not involved in 'the cash drawer' at the request of CNV, while the AOb last year did conclude the workload agreement with the other education unions, the PO council and the ministry. Slob writes: 'I assumed that the accelerated availability was completely in the spirit of the agreements made.'
Minister Arie Slob: 'I assumed that the accelerated availability was entirely in the spirit of the agreements made'
AObChairman Verheggen thinks that is strange. “This agreement was on the CLA table. The minister must take us seriously. All parties at the table, that is us, but also FvOV, the PO council, AVS and then also PO in Actie, are owners of the agreements made and you cannot bypass us, however good the intentions are. ”
Balloons
According to Verheggen, the 'balloons' that the minister keeps about 'extra money' for education, and then refers to the spring memorandum for an explanation, do not contribute to constructive consultation. The NOS made early this week announced that 100 million euros will be added to education every year.
Amounts are always being released and we cannot check it because the spring bill is not available
“Amounts are brought out every time and we cannot check it because the spring bill is not there,” says Verheggen. “That doesn't help education and it helps the conversation between AOb and the minister no further. While there is a big and serious problem: the teacher shortage. Serious investments are needed. There must be a long-term plan, the AOb proposed a Delta Plan. This offers prospects to new teachers and lateral entrants and ensures peace in the field. That juggling with numbers has to stop. ”
