Actually, the police wanted to stop working en masse on Sunday when PSV plays against Ajax. Due to earlier positive talks with the government, it was only a short work stop of hours. “But if there is no good proposal on Sunday 6 February to reduce the workload for police officers, we will no longer be visible on the street and during competitions and demonstrations,” says Maarten Brink, project leader of the threatening police actions.
The police have been asking for a reduction in the workload for some time. Earlier, the police and ME went on strike during a large announced demonstration against the corona measures in Amsterdam at the beginning of January. The demonstration was therefore banned because safety was endangered. This created great pressure on the government to look seriously at the wishes of the police. “They are in a panic in The Hague,” says Maarten Brink.
After this major action, the police laid down a number of demands to which a satisfactory answer must be provided before February 6. “We are with too few agents, which means that the workload is too high,” says Brink. “We also need to work on our safety, because the violence against aid workers is extreme. In addition, our collective labor agreement has expired and our income must be increased.”
It will not affect the PSV-Ajax match on Sunday. “The 100 to 150 agents that have been deployed are just there. They were briefed for an hour in the Evoluon in the morning about our requirements. The Eindhoven mayor John Jorritsma was also present to let the agents know how important they are to the police. community safety.”
“If after February 6 there is no good news from The Hague about our demands, our actions will become tougher again,” says Brink. “Then you will not see us at competitions, demonstrations and we will disappear completely from the streets.”