Trade union FNV disagrees with the estimate of representative of the transport companies VWOV that half of the regional buses are running on day two of the regional public transport strike. According to FNV, 75 percent of the timetable is stopped.
“The reporting at the stations is not correct,” says FNV director Marijn van der Gaag. “The companies send travelers out with the idea that they can just travel, but that is simply not true.”
He calculates that 6,000 people work in regional public transport every day. According to Van der Gaag, FNV and CNV together have registered 4500 people as strikers. “That brings us to 75 percent.
VWOV chairman Fred Kagie says that his organization has no interest in publishing incorrect figures. “I know what’s going on and I know what’s going on. ”
Action for higher wages
Thousands of bus drivers, train conductors and train drivers in regional transport have laid down their work since Monday. This concerns personnel from carriers such as Arriva, Qbuzz and Keolis. They are campaigning for higher wages.
They also want measures to be taken to reduce work pressure and thus absenteeism. “Everyone is burdened by the high work pressure,” says Van der Gaag. “It is just chasing and sitting at home after a working day.
On Monday, the collective bargaining offer from employers in regional transport expired, with which negotiations must start again. According to Arriva, unions had until 5 p.m. Monday to respond, but that did not happen. It concerned a bid for the multimodal collective labor agreement. An earlier bid for the larger collective labor agreement in regional transport had already expired.
‘We’re stuck’
Behind the scenes, the unions keep in touch with the employers, according to Van der Gaag. “The content is well established, we are bummed about that. But we are stuck and we have to keep pushing.” According to the union manager for regional transport, the unions want a mediator, but the employers do not want one.
Kagie believes that a mediator or a discussion leader can certainly contribute something, but that “something must also be done in advance”. He means that the VWOV does not want to sit down with the unions on their terms.