Yesterday’s OLME board meeting, which voted on whether to strike next week or not, was nothing short of dramatic. At first the board suggested a 24-hour strike on the 17th of May, first day of Panhellenic exams, followed by a five-day strike between the 20th and 24th of May and rolling five-day strikes thereafter.
Everything changed however when a union representative intervened and informed the board that the Minister of Labor Giannis Vroutsis proposed to a vote regulation in Parliament regarding the working status of teachers. This prompted the DAKE union to back down and withdraw its support of the strike that had just been decided upon. The board meeting was suspended and it was decided to resume on Friday morning.
DAKE’s representatives at OLME withdrew its proposal voting with ballots regarding the teacher strike. PAME, which is supported by the Communist Party, also changed its stance. DAKE initially requested that at least 30% of teachers vote at their local unions on the 15th of May, however this would create a procedural problem during the union meetings. PAME meanwhile agreed to a 48-hour strike on the 16th and 17th of May, but disagreed with carrying on the strike during the exams.
The Minister of Education Konstantinos Arvanitopoulos is to meet with the representatives of private school teachers, who have also threatened to strike.
