The parties in the teachers’ strike meet at the national mediator – news Norway – Overview of news from different parts of the country

On Saturday evening, national mediator Mats Ruland invited the parties in the teacher conflict to a meeting on Sunday 18 September at 12.00. Leader Steffen Handal confirmed that the Education Association will participate in the meeting. KS, the Norwegian Association of Lecturers and the School’s National Association will also participate in the meeting. The Ombudsman says he hopes something can come out of today’s talks. He says this to news ahead of the meeting. He does not know how long the meeting will take. Tor Arne Gangsø in KS and Steffen Handal in the Education Association. The picture is from the salary settlement in 2021. Photo: Terje Pedersen / NTB 8200 on strike from Monday The strike has been going on for over three months, and is already the longest teachers have had in Norway. If there is no solution during Sunday, the Education Association will take a further 1,800 members out on strike from Monday. Then a total of 8,200 teachers across the country will be on strike. The teachers announced earlier on Saturday which proposal they have given to the other party. The main requirement is a “school supplement” for all teachers from 1 May next year of NOK 10,300. Survey of strike consequences Several have warned against the consequences of the strike for children and young people. Last week, 92 concerned parents from Lillestrøm and Bergen sent a letter to the government demanding answers. The parents point out that the Convention on the Rights of the Child states that all children have the right to go to school and the right to be heard and taken into account. The convention must take precedence over Norwegian law if they conflict with each other. Olve Sæther Hansen is one of the parents who signed the letter. Photo: Leif Rune Løland / news One of the parents who signed the letter is Olve Sæther Hansen, who has a daughter at Gimle School in Bergen. He hopes that the organizations will today start to talk together and approach a solution. – We have lost so much of the school year now that we feel we cannot lose any more, says Hansen. – Alternatively, we hope that an escalation can lead to a different type of solution. Hansen believes that messages of concern that come in about the impact of the strike on children and young people’s mental health could lead to a forced wage review.



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