Bus drivers in regional transport will stop working for three days from today. Despite previous work stoppages, according to the FNV trade union, a decent collective labor agreement has not been forthcoming, making it a pure necessity to strike until Friday for a higher wage and a lower workload.
The union points the finger of blame at employers, who would refuse to cooperate in creating better working conditions. “They just raise their middle finger to their own staff,” said FNV director Marijn van der Veel.
It is not known how many buses will be canceled in Drenthe in the coming days. During the previous strike days, 70 percent of the journeys could continue nationally, although this differed per region. About 13,000 people work in regional transport. About six thousand of them are affiliated with FNV. CNV colleagues are not participating in the campaign: the union did sign the current collective labor agreement.
In Emmen it is significantly quieter at the station, says reporter Esmée Söllner. “There are buses, but a lot less than usual. I only see six buses on the board in the next hour.” The Q-liner to Groningen will also drive less. “It runs once an hour, instead of four times.”
Incidentally, only a handful of people were waiting for the bus to Groningen this morning. This may have to do with the fall break. A conscious choice, she says. “They have consciously taken this into account. The drivers want to show that they do not agree, but they do not want to be a burden to too many passengers.”
According to Van der Veel, drivers find it very annoying for the passenger if buses stay on the side, but leave them no other choice. “This strike is really due to the employers’ unwillingness to come to a fair collective labor agreement,” says the trade unionist. “The drivers are really fed up now and are not going to let it go. They will continue until that fair collective labor agreement is in place.”
The Association of Public Transport Employers (VWOV) finds the strikes incomprehensible. Chairman Fred Kagie does not understand that there is a strike for a collective labor agreement that expires at the end of this year. “We have already invited FNV a number of times. But the demands that the union now sets are about the future, for example about work pressure. I do not see how those requirements can be introduced retroactively in the current collective labor agreement.” Kagie therefore makes an appeal: “Come to the table and stop campaigning.”