From all levels of education, with the exception of universities, 34,314 Flemish teachers went on strike on Monday. Out of a total of 211,317 teachers, the strike rate reached 16.24%.
The COC describes this figure as historic. “Such a large number of teachers on strike has never happened in recent history,” said COC director Koen Van Kerkhoven. The latter, however, does not want to talk about victory. “We will continue to fight. People don’t always believe what we say, but the numbers speak for themselves.”
Koen Van Kerkhoven also calls for a political response. “And no talk of transitional measures. If we have to save three billion euros in the short term, we are not fools.”
-The unions are particularly concerned about a possible new method of calculating the public service pension by federal negotiators in Arizona. This method would take into account a career of 40 years or more only the last ten years, as is currently the case. According to the Flemish socialist union ACOD, this would represent a loss of 200 to 400 euros for future retirees.
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