Court interpreters are taking action: as of today, they no longer accept new orders from government agencies. As a result, some hearings with examining magistrates or police interrogations will not be able to take place, predicts the Order of Register Interpreters and Translators.
This interest group with 535 members has been campaigning for better pay for some time. Demonstrations were organized in Leeuwarden, Arnhem, Amsterdam and The Hague last week. “We are too small a profession to be able to make a fist. That is why we are taking these new actions,” said Fedde Dijkstra, herself an interpreter, translator and also chairman of the order. “Many colleagues participate, even people who are not part of our order.”
Unchanged
The rates have been unchanged for years. A qualified interpreter receives a fixed rate of 43.89 euros per hour. “Not enough,” said Dijkstra. “If a messenger signs off after five minutes, then we as interpreters will only be paid for that time. Then there is not much left. I am more left with the travel allowance than with the interpreting itself. case – to travel from Friesland to Limburg to interpret.”
SP MP Michiel van Nispen submitted a motion last Thursday in which he argues in favor of indexing (adjusting to inflation) the rates. According to him, interpreters and translators perform work that is “critical for our rule of law”. “There is a major crisis among interpreters and translators,” he said in the House. The motion will be voted on on October 26.
On Twitter, an interpreter shares the filing of the motion:
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