Classrooms with a polar atmosphere. At the time of recovery, the surprise was significant. On Monday, fifteen school groups in Lyon, or around thirty nursery and elementary schools out of the 200 in the city, found themselves without heating. With temperatures not exceeding 15°C. For some, the mercury fell below 10°C. Same thing in 20 to 25% of nurseries.
The reason: the agents of the City of Lyon from the Technical Management of Buildings Department, who are demanding a revaluation of their profession and an increase of 200 euros, went on strike, refusing to turn on the heating of public buildings, to the great dam parents of students.
“Our children aged 3 to 5 spent the day with a low temperature, between 12 and 14 degrees. What are the consequences for their health and their learning? And on the health of educational staff? “, worries this father. “It is unacceptable for the comfort and safety of children”, gets carried away Grégory Doucet, the mayor of Lyon while the strikers announce that they want to renew the movement this Tuesday.
Threat of disciplinary sanctions
The crisis meeting held Monday at the Hôtel-de-Ville ended in failure, the town hall having already released 6.4 million euros to increase the salaries of its agents.
The strike notice had been filed on October 18. The agents were received several times by the management of the town hall as part of the social dialogue, indicates to 20 minutes the mayor’s office. And a written request from the services was sent, at the start of the school holidays, to turn on the heating in schools and nurseries to obtain a temperature of 19°C on the first day of the school year. Except that the management discovered on Monday that the agents, present at their place of work and not declared strikers, had not executed this order.
For not having respected this public service mission, they risk a “disciplinary sanction”, indicates the mayor’s office. In the meantime, the parents of pupils have received a letter from the directorates of early childhood and education inviting them to “dress their children warmly”. Establishments, in which the temperature drops below 14 ° C, could be closed as of Tuesday.