Teachers' strike in Norway could escalate when new school year starts
The new school year in Norway could be marked by an escalation of a teachers' strike, which could see education professionals across the country join teachers in Bergen already on strike.
A dispute over pay and wage growth could see teachers nationwide strike at the beginning of the new school year in Norway, public broadcaster NRK reports.
"We have made a plan. I cannot reveal where, when and how many people will be affected by a strike. But it is only natural to imagine that an escalation will take place in connection with the start of school," Steffen Handal, head of the Norwegian Education Association, told NRK.
Currently, 40 teachers in Bergen are already on strike over wages. Handal says teachers have been the wage losers in the public sector's last six collective bargaining agreements.
"We are struggling to recruit and retain teachers. KS has made the teachers wage losers for the sixth year in a row. This is a policy that drives people out of the teaching profession," Handal said.
In May, the National Association of Schools, the Norwegian Association of Lecturers and the Norwegian Education Association came out against the deal, which the public sector accepted as a whole.
KS, the organisation which negotiates collective bargaining agreements with the public sector, has warned that there isn't really any room for negotiation.
READ ALSO: How easy is it to work as an English teacher in Norway?
"The money has been used up," Tor Arne Gangsø, director of labour at KS, told NRK.
Kristine Nergaard, a researcher with Fafo, which researchers working life, warned that the strike has the potential to drag on once it escalates.
"I think that it will last for at least two to three weeks from the time of escalation. Maybe more. It will also be difficult to manage this strike against the compulsory wage board," Nergaard told union news site Utdanningsnytt.no.
The researcher added that unions could take the same approach as in 2014 when 7,000 teachers were on strike at the beginning of the new school year.
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A dispute over pay and wage growth could see teachers nationwide strike at the beginning of the new school year in Norway, public broadcaster NRK reports.
"We have made a plan. I cannot reveal where, when and how many people will be affected by a strike. But it is only natural to imagine that an escalation will take place in connection with the start of school," Steffen Handal, head of the Norwegian Education Association, told NRK.
Currently, 40 teachers in Bergen are already on strike over wages. Handal says teachers have been the wage losers in the public sector's last six collective bargaining agreements.
"We are struggling to recruit and retain teachers. KS has made the teachers wage losers for the sixth year in a row. This is a policy that drives people out of the teaching profession," Handal said.
In May, the National Association of Schools, the Norwegian Association of Lecturers and the Norwegian Education Association came out against the deal, which the public sector accepted as a whole.
KS, the organisation which negotiates collective bargaining agreements with the public sector, has warned that there isn't really any room for negotiation.
READ ALSO: How easy is it to work as an English teacher in Norway?
"The money has been used up," Tor Arne Gangsø, director of labour at KS, told NRK.
Kristine Nergaard, a researcher with Fafo, which researchers working life, warned that the strike has the potential to drag on once it escalates.
"I think that it will last for at least two to three weeks from the time of escalation. Maybe more. It will also be difficult to manage this strike against the compulsory wage board," Nergaard told union news site Utdanningsnytt.no.
The researcher added that unions could take the same approach as in 2014 when 7,000 teachers were on strike at the beginning of the new school year.
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