This political week will be marked by the teaching strike planned for Tuesday. A key moment to measure the extent of the mobilization of the school world against the measures announced by the new MR-Engagés government. The risk is the return of a standoff like in the 90s.
A specter haunts the Wallonia-Brussels Federation, the specter of the strikes of the 90s. A long series of standoffs which wore down the PS-PSC majority (the ancestor of the Engagés) and led the two parties to a historic defeat in 1999 It began on September 27, 1990, education had just been communitized and the resources had not followed. We need to make savings (particularly on teachers’ salaries) the school world is in trouble. A demonstration degenerates in Namur. That will leave its mark, a general strike. Weeks and weeks of strike. The executive backs down and drops an agreement on salaries.
More money
The financial situation of the community remains poor, savings are going out the window. 1992, 1993, 1994 all these years were marked by significant strike movements, teachers but also pupils and higher education students, also, as today concerned by reforms and savings. At the time the cuts were clearer than today. In 96, the announcement of 2,800 teacher layoffs led to a standoff lasting several months. At the heart of this anger, the very young socialist Laurette Onkelinx, who became minister-president of the French community.
She will go to the end, her reform will finally pass. The teachers’ unions even alienate their own organizations CSC and FGTB which consider them too radical. But, they have not lost everything, the pressure put by the teachers will lead to a refinancing of the community that the French speakers went to negotiate with the Flemish in a reform of the State. And above all, the movement will lead to a major political reconfiguration. The teaching electorate will largely move from the PS and PSC to Écolo.
A new showdown?
Could we experience such a tough standoff? What does not seem to change is that despite the refinancing, the Wallonia-Brussels Federation remains structurally in deficit.
But the situation is not the same, in many respects. First, the savings announced are not as significant (they mainly concern the qualification, no cuts in salaries or massive loss of jobs) and society has changed a lot in 30 years. The esprit de corps, the union activism is certainly less strong today as is the student activism which was very powerful at the time.
However, it is a testing moment for the government and for the world of education. The possibility of a front, between school and student movement and public service (which has suffered greater savings than education) is a real possibility.
In this standoff, Les Engagés are in the most difficult position. Even if it is no longer the PSC of 30 years ago, part of their electorate is still made up of teachers, professors and civil servants, which is much less the case for the MR.
Yes, this strike is perhaps the beginning of a very long saga.
