By Kommunistisk Politik International
April 11th, updated April 12th 2013
Since April 1st the Danish schools have ceased to function. The whole public education system of elementary schools has been closed down only five or so weeks before the yearly exams.
The teachers are the first - who will be the next? Demonstration in Copenhagen March 20th - before the lockout
Four out of five of the country’s teachers have been thrown into the streets by their employers, the communities and the state. They are fighting a brilliant struggle against a fierce neoliberal attack on them and the public sector in general.
The lockout is the terror weapon of the employers, of the monopolies, and is now being used in the biggest sanction against public employees ever.
Almost 70.000 teachers– all members of the Danish Teachers’ Union and two smaller teachers’ unions from special schools – are not allowed to work. Some 700.000 pupils don’t have classes.
Denmark has a population of a little more than 5½ million, so every family is directly or indirectly affected by the lockout.
The public employers demand that the teachers in the future should teach more in the classes and the time for preparations should be reduced and not be protected by the labor contracts. The local headmaster will be the sole instructor of the workings hours of the teachers.
For many years the employers have tried to eliminate the teachers’ work time rules. Because of the holidays they have a 42-hours work week, divided into education in classes, preparation of classes, evaluation of the work of the pupils, coordination and meetings with parents etc. Now the standard would be set by the headmaster alone.
In this way the employers – the communities and the state – expect that fewer teachers will be needed, as they wish to sack thousands more. During the last couple of years thousands have already lost their jobs.
I'm lockouted: Protest in support of the teachers
Indeed the government – a so-called center-left coalition led by the social democrat Helle Thorning-Schmidt – has announced that more teaching hours for the teachers should finance a proposed neoliberal reform of the elementary school system, that should bring it closer to the systems of the dominationg countries of the European Union.
The labour force of the future shall learn what real workings hours are, and attend school for 37 hours a week (the oldest classes). From 8 o’clock to 15.30. . The average hours in school is planned to be dramatically extended in all ages. Today the school children leave school earlier in the afternoon to take part in different activities, sports and leisure.
The Danish Teachers’ Union have proposed different compromises to their opponents in the labour contract negotiations, but they have been flatly dismissed. They should accept the dictate or face a lockout.
A school without teachers in Copenhagen The banner reads: Locked out by the state
The lockout began April 1st and has created a lot of problems for the children and their families. The plan of the employers of the state and communities is to pass a law dictating the teachers those terms, they have refused to accept in the negotiations. The teachers have demanded that the dictates are withdrawn paving the way for real negotiations.
From the first day the teachers have launched a great struggle to win the support of the people, and they have succeeded. They a supported by a clear majority both in their demands and in the rejection of the proposed all day school reform.
They have used the social media, including making videos of actions, mobilizing on facebook etc. in new ways, never seen before. The costly professional campaign of advertisements by their opponents have fallen flat against this mass campaign.
But most of all: They have manifested themselves in creative and colorful mass manifestations on a local and national level. Such as a local action undertaken by 200 teachers in the small town of Silkeborg, who swam in a frozen lake, signaling to their opponents to ‘break the ice’ and resume negotiations. Or the creation c of the longest human chain seen in Denmark, ranging 31 kilometers from Roskilde to Copenhagen. Or 5000 teachers in a flash mob dopping their book in front of the town hall of Copenhagen.
See videos
Breaking the ice
mja.dk
Human chain, reading and torch light demo
Activiets of April 9th
Flash mob video: 5000 teachers loosing their books on the Town Hall Square Copenhagen
Of course they have organized marches and demonstrations, so far culminating in a national demonstration in front of the parliament April 11th under the slogan ‘The teachers are the first – who will be the next?’ – indicating that this is only the initial round in the neoliberal attack on the public sector and its employees.
April 11th 2013: Partial view of the square in front of the Parliament
More than 100.000 people took part in the demonstration which was not only the biggest mass protest against the present government, but one of the biggest in front of the parliament ever.
Click on the picture to watch KPnetTV-video from the protest April 11th
The chairman of the teachers union Anders Bondo Kristensen speaking to the crowd and adressing the government and the neoliberal politicians: "We are tired of your technocratic rule . If you don't understand thios, we shall kick you out!"
Watch the video with his short speech here
The teachers have turned their struggle into the most powerful labor struggle in many years, creating big troubles for the already troubled neoliberal government. The popularity of the social democratic party is at a historical all time low, with 15-17 percent – that is less than a century ago!
When the government took over in 2011 after a decade of open bourgeois governments (of Anders Fogh Rasmussen and Lars Løkke Rasmussen) many expected that it would put an end to the neoliberal reforms pursued by the liberal parties. Instead it has increased the tempo of the anti worker and anti youth reforms.
The lockout and the school reform and the whole neoliberal reform agenda of the ‘center-left’ government is supported by the parliamentary ‘opposition’, the former government parties of the ‘blue bloc’ as well as by the employers organizations. Also some industrial unions have openly supported the government against the teachers, who on their side have the support of all trade unions of the public sector, the pupils and the parents and most ordinary people.
APK – the Workers’ Communist Party of Denmark – has taken an active part in the great teachers’ struggele. The party has condemned the school reform and the other neoliberal reforms of the social democratic government all along, calling for the creation a broad popular movement against the neoliberal reforms and for the creation of a popular and revolutionary alternative to both the liberal and social liberal parties and governments.
Lift the lockout! Remove the dictates!
Demonstration in front of the public employers building in Copenhagen
Kommunistisk Politiks internet TV KPnetTV has many more videos from the lockout: Find and watch them here
April 11th 2013