Normalizing extra-statutory schemes is a vague story
The cabinet links higher wages to 'normalization of the extra statutory schemes'. But what is the point then? And is there a slide? No, says the AOb. Because education structurally has too little money: for buildings, teaching materials and staff.
Image: Joëlle Poortvliet / Editors Education Magazine
Education Minister Arie Slob has no extra money. So he looks at the agreements that have already been made in education. In the Algemeen Dagblad he said about this: 'education itself can still cut its own non-statutory rules in order to have extra spending.' Normalizing, as Slob calls it, simply means cutting back in political jargon. Non-statutory rules, what exactly is that? Because actually all agreements in the collective labor agreement are extra-statutory.
Unions make collective agreements
In the negotiations on the coalition agreement, that line was directly opposed to D66's billion-dollar claim. They had 3,8 billion euros extra for education in the election program. That has become 1,4 billion euros in the coalition agreement, plus the comment that education itself should start shifting money within the subsidies they receive from the government. A comment, because that's what the opinion of the AOb the minister actually not at all. Collective labor agreements are the work of the unions.
For example, there is a Working Hours Act, which everyone must adhere to, but about which far better agreements are made in collective labor agreements of companies, government and education that go beyond this act. There is a legal minimum wage, and salary agreements have been made in collective labor agreements that are higher than that minimum wage. Does the minister want to do something about these extra-statutory wages in education by lowering them to the minimum wage? Probably not. But what then?
Existing budget
The idea of looking for money within the existing budget of schools is not new. Prime Minister Mark Rutte (VVD) said the following at the start of the election campaign about investing in education in Schooljournaal magazine: 'No billions extra are needed. All the extra money that has been raised in the past has not reduced the number of complaints. '
In primary education, the question is whether posts can be found that allow substantial amounts to be shifted to salary (higher) and workload (more people). Primary education falls short on all counts. The subsidy for materials is too low, which means that boards are taking millions of euros from the personnel pot. The staff pool is too small, which is reflected in low salaries and full classes. So where can you actually get money? That will be crumb work.
According to the government, the government is aiming for a salary increase by tackling the benefits AOb indigestible if we look at the labor market.
Unemployment
One of those crumbs that politicians look at with suspicion is the extra-statutory unemployment benefit in education. In primary education, this amounted to 2016 million euros in 74. That is the total of various measures, such as a third year of unemployment benefits, for which many more collective labor agreements have signed. In addition, a higher payment percentage in the first six months - important for starters - and a longer duration for people with many years of service, who have less chance of finding a job after dismissal.
This creates a good mix for young and old in case of unemployment. It almost always involves a dismissal that no one is waiting for and that you cannot influence, for example in the case of shrinkage. The government believes that the government is aiming for a salary increase by tackling benefits AOb indigestible if we look at the labor market.
Unemployment is dropping, especially in primary education. Yes, unemployment in the Randstad is now around 2 percent. Labor market experts call this frictional unemployment, almost a balance, and if unemployment falls further than schools feel it as a shortage. Incidentally, unions and employers in the Participation Fund, which implements the unemployment scheme in primary education, are already working on getting more people to work more quickly, now that this is also possible due to the teacher shortage. The number of unemployed is expected to fall sharply in the coming years.
Safety net
But this is completely different in shrinking areas. Unemployment in Limburg and Friesland is between 4 to 6 percent. Outside the Randstad, shrinkage will certainly continue until 2023. People there will lose their jobs and that requires a considerable safety net until there is work again. How badly that was needed has become clear in recent years.
Unemployment in education started to rise sharply from 2010 onwards. It more than doubled between 2010 and 2016. Mainly because of shrinkage in primary education. It is expected that in 2023 there will be about 170 thousand fewer students than fifteen years ago. That is almost seven thousand fewer classes and just as many full-time jobs. At the same time, the state pension age was raised, so that the elderly continued to work longer and starters did not find work. Nice promises from Rutte II to finance three thousand starter jobs were not put into action. There was also no other work in the region for people in shrinking areas, so there was every reason to have a good safety net if necessary.
