Skopje, 11 April 2022 (MIA) – According to our information and knowledge, the strike is taking place in all primary and secondary schools and in preschools, even those who aren’t members of the Independent Trade Union for Education, Science and Culture (SONK) are joining the strike en masse, SONK Head Jakim Nedelkov told a press conference on the general strike that started on Monday demanding an increase in salaries in the education sector. He said about 25,000 employees in the schools and preschools joined the strike today, adding that the number is minor, i.e. not more than a thousand, of those who are not taking part. In addition, there have been fewer pupils in primary and secondary schools, and relatively fewer children in preschools. “We’re very happy that no incidents have been reported, and no child has been turned back from school. The most important thing is that the message was sent to the authorities, which is very clear – there’s huge dissatisfaction in the preschools, the primary and secondary schools,” Nedelkov stressed. According to the Union leader, more intense pressure has been seen in preschools in terms of principals insisting that the staff stop striking. He said there were a large number of employees who were not on strike in the “Orce Nikolov” kindergarten in Karposh municipality and “Kocho Racin” in Centar, as well as kindergartens in Valandovo, Gevgelija, and several other municipalities where strikers had to be at work even though they were on strike. Nedelkov mentioned there were grounds to file charges involving lists of employees on strike in regards to a kindergarten in Bitola, which is contrary to strike rules and the law. He stressed that no one should interrupt the process of strike, adding that criminal charges are provided for attempts to prevent strike. In addition, there have been some issues in terms of working hours during strike, with reference to the Law on Labor Relations. However, Nedelkov pointed out that the employees were not required to be at work for eight hours, adding that this was only a matter of pressure. In addition, Nedelkov said he might meet with the Minister of Education and Science, Jeton Shaqiri, on Tuesday, after the two held brief talks today. He added that the union would wait to be invited for a meeting, as long as such meeting involves constructive and concrete dialogue, instead of pointless conversation. The Head of SONK noted that the strike resumes on Tuesday, even if a meeting with government representatives is to take place Monday evening and certain agreement is reached, as all proposals undergo a procedure with union membership to authorize a possible end of strike or refusal of proposals. “The procedure must be followed, which requires time,” Nedelkov added.