Teachers at the European schools in Brussels are taking to the streets on Wednesday to demand union representation and equal rights for locally recruited staff, who have no job stability and unfair contracts.
European school teachers announced several actions at the start of February to take a stand against their unfair contracts and lack of union representation. As the previous two-hour strike on 20 February went well, they will now hold a half-day strike on Wednesday.
"We will meet on Boulevard Charlemagne, near Schuman at 09:30. At around 10:30, we will make our way to the schools to hopefully be received by the Secretary-General. Hopefully, he will come out and talk to a delegation," Tom Holvoet, union secretary of the Christian trade union ACV Puls, told The Brussels Times.
As in February, the teachers have the same central demand for the Secretary-General, the European Commission and the Board of Governors: being allowed to set up a union delegation. "This would be a first step to giving them the opportunity to organise and inform themselves in a school, but also to tackle any issues they are having."
'There is never any real change'
Over 250 participants participated in the action on 20 February. Now, Holvoet is expecting around 150 people. "It is a bigger step, as we are not just doing the action inside the schools like last time. Still, maybe 300 people show up. Who knows."
Some of the teachers and the management feel that immediately resorting to strikes is not the most productive way to achieve their goals. However, Holvoet explained that several attempts to explain their case via meetings and talks have failed.
"I understand the positions of both the director and the Secretary-General, but that is exactly where the problem lies in the European schools: they may be friendly and polite, but there is never any real change," he said.
Holvoet stressed that that is exactly why trade union delegations are needed: to ensure that employees can implement necessary changes in their schools. "We do not believe that meeting again with the same people on the same subject will produce anything different, unless something essential changes."
Credit: Belga / Jasper Jacobs
This lack of union representation becomes very clear in the discussion about equal rights for seconded teachers (détachés) sent by EU Member States and Locally Recruited Teachers (LRTs).
While the two do the same job on a day-to-day basis, LRTs do not benefit from job security, fair salary structures, or proper career progression – leaving them vulnerable to sudden job losses, contract reductions, and unpredictable working hours. A more in-depth explanation of the article can be found here.
"It illustrates perfectly what the issue is. Without a union delegation, the LRTs do not have a way to organise themselves and demand better job conditions," Holvoet explained.
He understands that striking teachers cause a massive inconvenience for pupils and especially their parents, who may have to take a day off work to stay home with their children. "That is not nice. But schools have to take that step and give the teachers the opportunity to organise themselves."
