The Mayor of the Brussels municipality of Saint-Josse-ten-Noode Emir Kir wants to make it mandatory for commune staff to work from home on Fridays to cut the municipality's energy costs, but his proposal is facing a lot of criticism from the opposition parties and the staff trade union.
As Saint-Josse's energy costs have doubled in recent months, Kir aims to save 20% on energy bills by having administrative staff work from home one day a week, he announced in a press release.
"If we do not act to stop the bleeding, the municipal finances – already in a bad state after Covid-19 – will be in the red and we want to avoid this scenario," he announced last week. "We are considering a series of measures, the first of which is the obligation to telework every Friday from 14 October."
Closing the commune buildings and meeting rooms for three days (Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays) should result in an estimated saving of 20%, according to Kir. "These are not pleasant measures, but others will follow if the situation does not improve. Unfortunately, we have no choice because we want to preserve the jobs of our staff and a fair tax system for the population."
Related News
- Decathlon changes name to 'Nolhtaced' in three Belgian cities
- Over a quarter of Belgian businesses in financial trouble
- Interactive: How much are your home appliances costing you?
However, Brussels Minister of Local Governments Bernard Clerfayt wants to investigate whether the measure is legal, as Kir's proposal essentially means passing the energy bill on to the employees.
"I ask to scrap that measure because it is absurd and antisocial," Brussels MP Juan Benjumea Moreno told Bruzz. "The municipality must save on energy costs, and instead of taking structural measures, perhaps insulating, they pass the bill on to the municipal staff."
He added that telework should only be made mandatory in an exceptional situation, such as the Covid-19 pandemic, when people are at risk of infecting each other. "But you cannot just do that for any reason."
Member of the ACOD trade union Maxime Nys also pointed out that employees should receive a work-from-home compensation because they also have high energy bills themselves.
