Slovakia: Workers strike over unacceptable education budget
The Trade Union of Workers in Education and Science of Slovakia (OZ PŠaV), an affiliate of the global union Education International, called for a one-day strike on September 13, 2012 to show its dissatisfaction with the government’s budget proposal for 2014-15.
The workers say the proposed budget falls well short of bringing Slovakia’s education expenditures in line with comparable EU countries. Currently spending on education in Slovakia is less than 4 per cent of the national GDP, including the support received from the European Union.
OZ PŠaV’s president Pavel Ondek says that the action on September 13 is a warning strike because the government has so far failed to address the funding problems in negotiations. The union is also demanding that the government address the problems of low salaries for teachers and non-teaching staff.
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