Strike continues despite investment rumors
"The strike will continue as usual." That says AObchairman Liesbeth Verheggen in a first reaction to the rumors about 500 million euros for lowering workload in primary education.
Picture: Type tank
We only know for sure that money will be added when we see it in black and white in the coalition agreement. And we need an extra 900 million euros because wages also have to be pushed up considerably."
Verheggen calls the action of 'sources around the cabinet' a classic. "We've seen this before: on the eve of a strike, a piece of news is brought to break the resistance. But we're just going to The Hague tomorrow, because we don't have anything yet. And besides: this strike is about much more than work pressure. If we want to make the labor market in primary education a bit more attractive to prospective students, primary schools must be able to offer a salary that allows them to attract more highly educated people. That is certainly not the case now."
The consequences of this can be found in the forecasts used by the Ministry of Education itself. Verheggen: "It is screened at teacher shortages of ten thousand FTEs by 2025. You can probably influence such a figure with an attack on work pressure, but you are really not over the leak if you hardly do anything about the remuneration. Especially the men for the class that the ChristenUnie is so fanatically committed to, largely stay away if you can earn much more in other sectors."
AOb-chairman Liesbeth Verheggen: "With the entire PO front we are in the Zuiderpark with a clear message to the VVD, CDA, D66 and ChristenUnie: come across the bridge with those 1,4 billion euros."
And so Verheggen will just take the bus to The Hague tomorrow. To strike. "With the entire PO front, we are in Zuiderpark with a clear message to the VVD, CDA, D66 and ChristenUnie: come across the bridge with that 1,4 billion euros. If things go well, the Netherlands will be on the eve of economically beautiful times, but our knowledge society stands or falls with a solid foundation. Primary education is needed for that. Restore the remuneration, ensure a healthy sector."
