Five-year-old Anna-Lisa plays football in Tennfjord in Ålesund municipality. She does not have a kindergarten place on Monday because of the strike. At the weekend, there was a breach in the settlement for private kindergarten employees. The Education Association, the Trade Union and Delta did not agree with the National Association of Private Kindergartens (PBL). This means that Anna-Lisa and many other children do not have the nursery services they are used to on Mondays. Instead, she spends the day with grandmother Victoria Eik. The two have both done puzzles and jumped on the trampoline. – It’s going well. I have time off and not much else to do, says Eik. She is retired and fully understands that the nursery staff demand a better pension. Even if the strike were to be prolonged, grandma thinks it will go well. She has time to look after Anna-Lisa, but she thinks it can be a challenge for parents who do not have grandparents or others to help with childcare. – It is sad for them, but we must have understanding for those who strike, says Eik. – We are fighting for an important cause – It is very regrettable that it affects the children and parents. That’s what Tonje Indregård says, who is the local strike leader for the striking kindergarten employees at the Learning Workshop Hammersborg kindergarten in Trondheim. – We are striking for an important issue, says Indregård. We are striking for a better pension scheme. There are 1,007 employees in 112 kindergartens across the country who have been called out on strike now. See the list of which kindergartens apply further down in the case. The main demand of the trade unions is that the AFP scheme for the employees must be lifelong. Today, it is limited to those between 62 and 67 years of age. Trond Ellefsen in Delta Photo: Nadia Frantsen – We are greeted with cheers from parents. Everyone supports us and believes that those who work with their children should have arranged working conditions, arranged pay and good pension schemes, says Trond Ellefsen. He is first deputy chairman of Delta, and has taken the trip to the striking kindergarten employees in Trondheim. – Completely unrealistic – We are faced with a package of demands for pensions, which we believe are completely unrealistic and very comprehensive, says Marius Iversen. He is director of communications at the employers’ organization PBL. He does not think today is a good day, and thinks the situation is serious. PBL hopes that the strike will not be prolonged, but says that as of now there has been no formal contact between the parties. – We are available 24/7 for the trade unions if they want to talk to us, and if there is something to talk about, says Iversen. Escalation announced Already on Thursday this week, an escalation of the strike has been announced. If the parties have not agreed, a further 961 employees will be made redundant. This applies to kindergartens throughout the country. – The will to fight is great, says Ellefsen. He says they are in good spirits and willing to strike for a long time. If the strike is stepped up on Thursday, kindergartens in these municipalities will be affected: Bodø Trondheim Bømlo Ålesund Kristiansand Stavanger Sandnes Bergen Oslo Bærum Ullensaker Eidsvoll Skien Halden
ttn-69
Warns of escalation of the kindergarten strike – news Trøndelag
