Day care workers broaden strike

Focal points remain the states of North Rhine-Westphalia, Saarland and Baden-Württemberg – but public workers’ union Verdi also called on employees in the states of Bavaria and Lower Saxony to walk off their jobs.

In Bavarian capital Munich, some 400 day care centres closed their doors.

On Friday, Verdi and the Education and Science Workers’ Union (GEW) called some 11,000 day care providers and social workers to begin an open-ended strike in seven states, forcing parents to scramble for alternative arrangements or simply stay home with their children. The unions said then that they were prepared to dig in for a long-term battle.

Current wages for 220,000 educators across the country are unfair, and workers need better healthcare options to handle the strain of their jobs, they say.

Head of negotiations for the state employers Manfred Hoffmann told broadcaster ZDF that the strikes are “totally disproportionate,” on Monday.

“We regret it’s come to this,” he said.

The next round of negotiations is planned for May 27.