Five-day warning strike in daycare centers begins

Childcare - Five-day warning strike in daycare centers begins

With demonstrations in front of the CDU-Headquarters and the Charlottenburg-Wilmersdorf Town Hall, the five-day warning strike in Berlin's kindergarten cooperatives begins. The Senate continues to block a constructive solution in favor of employees, parents, and children, according to Verdi. The union intends to increase pressure to initiate negotiations on a wage contract for pedagogical quality and relief. Kindergartens were already struck on a total of seven days in previous weeks.

"We have a dramatic crisis in the kindergartens, which will become even more dramatic if the Senate doesn't finally take care of relief now. That's why we have no choice but to intensify our strike," said Dana Griesche, pedagogical expert in the kindergarten cooperative Südost, according to Verdi.

The situation is complicated: Finance Senator Stefan Evers (CDU) has recently criticized Verdi sharply and spoken of "senseless strikes at the expense of children and parents." According to his statements, the Land Berlin cannot negotiate a corresponding wage contract with Verdi, which, among other things, would regulate group sizes and compensation for burdens. Evers argues that Berlin is a member of the Tarifgemeinschaft der Länder (TdL) and therefore cannot make decisions on tariff-legal issues alone. The Verband Bildung und Erziehung (VBE) Berlin is providing support. Verdi criticizes this attitude as not credible.

According to Senate statements, there are around 2,900 kindergartens in Berlin, many of which are run by free providers. There, around 165,000 children are cared for. The warning strike affects approximately 280 municipal kindergartens. There, around 7,000 daycare workers and teachers, as well as other employees, care for about 35,000 children.

1. The crisis in Berlin's kindergartens, as deemed by Verdi, could worsen if the Senate fails to address relief promptly, leading to an intensification of the strike.
2. The United Services Union (Verdi) has chosen Charlottenburg-Wilmersdorf as one of the locations for their demonstrations, targeting the CDU-Headquarters and Town Hall.
3. Stefan Evers, Financing Senator from the CDU, has recently chastised Verdi for senseless strikes, claiming that Berlin, as a member of Tarifgemeinschaft der Länder (TdL), cannot unilaterally negotiate a wage contract affecting group sizes and burdens compensation.
4. The Kindergarten cooperatives in Charlottenburg-Wilmersdorf are part of the five-day warning strike, with around 7,000 daycare workers and teachers participating in the strike, affecting 35,000 children.
5. The Trade Union (Verdi) has expressed their disbelief towards Evers' stance, urging the Senate to take immediate action and initiate negotiations for a wage contract addressing pedagogical quality and relief.
6. The strike in Berlin's kindergartens, supported by Verband Bildung und Erziehung (VBE) Berlin, has already impacted kindergartens for a total of seven days in previous weeks, causing disruptions in childcare for parents and children in Charlottenburg-Wilmersdorf.

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