"Great news from Asscher, but everything can still change"
The pressure from the PO front seems to be paying off: in today's Algemeen Dagblad, outgoing minister Lodewijk Asscher of Social Affairs (PvdA) announces that salaries in education will go up in the next budget. At least he's still in the cabinet. AOb-chairman Liesbeth Verheggen is happy with Asscher's support. 'There is movement in the case. But everything can still change.'
Asscher announced today in the Algemeen Dagblad that the outgoing cabinet will adjust the salaries in primary education if there is no new team on the platform around Prinsjesdag. "That costs money, but we will do it," said the PvdA leader. The move is unusual because caretaker cabinets usually do not launch investment agendas. But according to Asscher, the difficult negotiations for a new coalition are forcing the incumbent team into action.
Caveat
Verheggen thinks it is a good signal. 'If the outgoing minister of social affairs takes a step like this, it will be crystal clear that the message will reach The Hague. But please note: Asscher makes a logical reservation. The moment there is an agreement tomorrow without the PvdA, the cards may be shuffled differently. Nor does he say how much the salaries will increase. And it is unclear whether this is a condition of the PvdA to 'just' work on a budget. That ambiguity is logical in this case: in a few weeks there could just be a coalition that taps into something else.'
The only thing that Verheggen knows for sure now is that the PvdA wants to meet the PO front. 'It is interesting to know where the VVD stands. If it is a decision of the entire cabinet, then Prime Minister Mark Rutte will come to the negotiating table with a story that deviates from the frugal proposals from the election program of the VVD.
At the same time, Secretary of State for Education Sander Dekker (VVD) announced yesterday at the conference of the PO council that education should not always ask for money. That signal is in stark contrast to the intentions of the Deputy Prime Minister. It is certain, however, that it will be a lot more difficult for the next cabinet to refrain from investing in the salaries of primary education. But it is important that we keep the pressure on: in fact primary education has nothing yet.'
Manifestation and actions
The actions in primary education are slowly but surely getting fiercer: on 27 June, schools in primary education will open an hour later and there will be a demonstration in The Hague in the afternoon. The PO front - which apart from the AOb consists of PO in Actie, FNV, CNV Onderwijs, FVOV, AVS and the PO council -demands extra money to curb the workload and to adjust the salaries upwards. This is necessary to make the education labor market more attractive: people who currently work in primary education are more likely to experience burnout than in any other sector. In the meantime, the growth from the PABOs is not sufficient to replace the number of pensionable colleagues.
A petition calling on political parties to invest heavily in primary education in the coming years has been online at www.pofront.nl for a week and a half and has been signed more than 215 times at the time of writing.
