A national strike means that pharmacies in Brabant will be closed on Thursday and Friday this week. Unions FNV and CNV are on strike to ensure higher wages and better working conditions for those working in pharmacies.
At the end of last year, the unions announced a week’s strike around christmas, but the court ruled against it. Urgent medication will remain available during the strike.
After the court had ruled against a strike by pharmacists in the Christmas week, the unions announced a national strike of several days. The unions have promised that no one who needs urgent medication in the coming week will go without.
Series of strikes
The strike 9 and 10 January will not mean a national workers’ demonstration. Earlier strikes did have such manifestations. On 12 November, for example, there was a national demonstration on Malieveld in The Hague.
In our province, too, pharmacies kept their doors closed in protest. In November there was a manifestation in Best and in October over a thousand pharmacy workers from Zeeland, Brabant and Limburg came together in Tilburg.
Higher wage increase
Unions FNV and CNV demand a retroactive pay rise of at least six per cent counting from 1 July. The employers offer 2 per cent from 1 July and 5 per cent from 1 July next year. They claim that the policies of health insurers and the government make it impossible for them to pay more.
The unions also want minimum wages to be raised to 16 euros an hour and demand more measures to reduce workload. Finally, the unions demand that workers are paid for the time spent on preparing their working day.
Source: Studio040
Image source: Wikimedia
Translator: Greta
