According to the unions, wages and benefits are too low in the sector. — © RR
–
Housekeepers’ unions are threatening a strike because wages and relocation allowances in the sector are too low.
–
“We are going to campaign in Brussels on Thursday 18 November. Domestic helpers who want to participate are covered with a striker’s allowance,” said Issam Benali, secretary of the socialist trade union ABVV. “If our problems are not resolved, a broader strike could follow at a later date.”
The unions believe that wages in the sector are too low. “And then household helpers also have to pay to go to work,” says Benali. “The travel allowances that the household helpers receive do not cover the real costs. They barely get thirteen euro cents per kilometer.”
“Industry is underfunded”
Federgon, the federation that represents employers in the service voucher sector, deplores the action of the unions. “We have already made resources available to provide a 0.4% wage surcharge on top of the index,” said Ann Cattelain, Federgon’s CEO. “But our sector is structurally underfunded.”
Flemish Economy Minister Hilde Crevits (CD&V) says that the service voucher companies will receive more resources. “From now on, we will pay the full indexation of the wage costs to the service voucher companies. Until now, we only paid 73% of that indexation,” says Crevits. “With those extra resources, the working conditions of the domestic helpers must also be strengthened.”
But according to Federgon, that is not enough. “We get money for indexation, but not to pay for other expenses such as travel costs,” says Ann Cattelain. (quill)
—
