It must be done with the strike and the actions in regional transport. That is the call made by CDA State Secretary Vivianne Heijnen (Infrastructure and Water Management) on Wednesday. She fears, among other things, that the Dutch will otherwise not be able to go to the polls next week, because strike actions have been announced on election day 15 March.
Heijnen says that it ‘concerns’ her that the actions in regional transport are continuing and that there is no prospect of an agreement. “Regional transport is an indispensable link in public transport in the Netherlands. Thousands of people depend on the regional bus or train to go to school, work, care or family,” said the minister.
She calls on employers, unions and employees to “restart talking to each other and suspend the actions in the interests of travelers. Only by talking to each other is there a way out of this deadlock.”
Election Day
Heijnen is very concerned about the Dutch who depend on regional transport. “These are the people who miss education without a bus or train, cannot go to the doctor or cannot do their shopping.” She also fears the turnout on election day, March 15. “I have a problem with the fact that there is now a threat of strikes on March 15 on election day for the Provincial Council and water boards. Striking is an important fundamental right, but so is voting. And the announced strikes on this day prevent everyone in the Netherlands from going to the polls. I therefore urge the unions to at least suspend this day of action.”
In recent days, both the trade unions and the employers’ association have asked for a mediator or a moderator. According to Heijnen, it should indeed come. “But it is not up to me to appoint such a person, but to the organizations themselves. This is a conflict that they must resolve together.”