The education unions ACOD Education, COC and VSOA Education are organizing five demonstrations in May, out of dissatisfaction with the report of the so-called ‘Committee of Wise Men’. To this end, they must submit strike notices, they report in a joint statement. Antwerp is the first to come on Tuesday, May 7.
On behalf of Flemish Minister of Education Ben Weyts (N-VA), the Committee of Wise Men, led by Dirk Van Damme and Paul Yperman, developed seventy proposals for the professionalization of the teaching profession. When its report was published in December, the unions already responded critically.
ACOD Education, COC and VSOA Education have now decided to take action against the recommendations in the report. They dismiss them as “fantasies, ill-considered measures and recipes from the past”, which will not help to make education “high-quality and attractive”. “For many staff members, the proposals of the Committee of Wise Men are the opposite of what is necessary. The staff members, the real experts, are once again not being heard by policymakers. With our actions we want to give our members and anyone who wants to join us the opportunity to make that voice louder,” it said.
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Antwerp, Ostend, Leuven, Hasselt, Ghent
In concrete terms, in May they organize demonstrations on five different days in five different cities in all Flemish provinces. Antwerp is the first to come on Tuesday, May 7, followed by Ostend on Wednesday, May 8, Leuven on Monday, May 13, Hasselt on Tuesday, May 14 and finally Ghent on Wednesday, May 15. The actions will be accompanied by strike notices.
However, the inconvenience for school children will probably remain limited. “The intention is not to strike for the sake of striking, but to participate in the demonstration,” says Koen Van Kerkhoven of the ACV. “And I don’t expect education staff to participate in all five demonstrations, but probably only in the nearest one. Everyone is free in that. People may also choose the day on which they do not have lessons.”
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