Loukas is in his 6th professional year in masonry in Nivelles. “I am at the end of my cycle and it may be my last year because our option risks closing. There are four of us in the class (Editor’s note: you must have at least 10 students). The 7th grade is important to have a management diploma and avoid going bankrupt”he explains. “If there is no 7th, I will be very embarrassed and it is a choice that is finally taken away from me.
“We protested without thinking because we wanted to take action in one way or another”continues Loukas. “I want to secure my future but also that of those who follow me and my children.” Several students made two large puppets which were symbolically hung from the school gates and around forty of them joined the procession to attend the funeral of the qualifier organized at the Grand-Place.
In Waterloo, too, young people wanted to mobilize alongside their teachers. Same on the Brussels side. Sabrina teaches fashion design and clothing and did not hesitate to talk about the strike with her students. “They are asking and thanked me. It was the only class that was there by my side.”