March 18, 2025, 14:00 AM

‘Don’t do it!’ ‘Don’t do it!’ (end of this liveblog)

Bram Douwes (Usva director) led a short Q&A session with Sandra Beckerman (MP for the SP), Janette Bosma (PvdA city council member) and Julian Bushoff (GL-PvdA MP and former UG student). They ended with the yell ‘Don’t do it!’ (in Dutch: ‘Doe het niet!’), as the protesters joined in.

There will be an information market on the Grote Markt until 4 p.m., after which the day of protest and strike comes to an end. And with it, this liveblog. Thanks for following us!

March 18, 2025, 13:45 AM

Spotted: the boards of UG and Hanze

It was not clear whether the boards of the UG and Hanze University of Applied Sciences would show up, but they did, with red squares on their coats. From left to right Jouke de Vries (UG board chairman), Thony Visser (dean Faculty of Arts), Casper Albers (dean Faculty of Behavioural and Social Sciences), Annemarie Hannik (Hanze UAS), Hans Biemans (UG board member), Rene Collé (Hanze UAS) and Jacquelien Scherpen (rector UG).

March 18, 2025, 13:30 AM

The speeches have begun

March 18, 2025, 12:45 AM

This is what the event looks like from the Martini tower…

… And from the City Hall

March 18, 2025, 12:30 AM

And now… fries with mayonnaise

The unions have hired food trucks, because marching makes you hungry. Long queues immediately formed with people waiting for chips with mayo.

March 18, 2025, 12:15 AM

Rough estimate: at least 1,000 participants in protest march

All faculties have found each other in Oude Kijk in ‘t Jatstraat, and they are now heading to Grote Markt together. It’s difficult to make an accurate estimate, but at least a thousand people are participating in the march.

March 18, 2025, 12:00 AM

‘Join us, join us, join us!’

Strikers in the city centre are also ready to go to Grote Markt. They will wait for their colleagues from Zernike and BSS – who have now found each other – in Oude Kijk in ‘t Jatstraat before walking on together.

March 18, 2025, 11:30 AM

On the way from Zernike to Grote Markt

March 18, 2025, 11:15 AM

Preparations for the march

At many faculties, protest signs are being made for the protest march. The strikers at Zernike join those from behavioural and social cciences at Noorderplantsoen. Everyone will gather at Grote Markt for a demonstration.

March 18, 2025, 11:15 AM

Handing out flyers on Oude Boteringestraat

Staff and philosophy students are handing out flyers on Oude Boteringestraat.

March 18, 2025, 11:00 AM

An outdoor lecture in the sun at arts

Lectures and classes are being held in several places, such as here at Harmonie square. The theme of this outdoor lecture: demonstrations and strikes through the years.

March 18, 2025, 10:15 AM

A speech in the sun at BSS

Speech by the university council at the Faculty of Behavioural and Social Sciences (BSS). Third from the right stands Casper Albers, dean of BSS and a longtime advocate of WOinActie.

March 18, 2025, 10:15 AM

Coffee and pastries in the sun at Zernike

It’s chilly at Zernike; a coat or sweater is still necessary. But the spring sun, coffee, and pastries make up for a lot.

March 18, 2025, 09:30 AM

Free law books and free philosophy pastry

Staff members and students from the Faculty of Law are giving away free law books, along with a letter. It states: ‘We are handing out these books because if the budget cuts continue, people will have to fight for their own rights.’ The Faculty of Philosophy is handing out pastries and drinks to everyone on strike.

March 18, 2025, 09:00 AM

‘Workload is already sky-high’

Jessica de Bloom (left), a professor at the Faculty of Economics and Business (FEB), joins PhD candidates handing out flyers near the Duisenberg Building. ‘The workload is already sky-high, and I’m afraid of what will happen if the budget cuts go through’, she says.

March 18, 2025, 08:30 AM

Striking Zernike awakens in the morning sun

Zernike Campus is also waking up. It’s chilly, but the sun is shining brightly. Strikers are handing out flyers at the entrance of the Bernoulliborg.

March 18, 2025, 08:00 AM

UG newsletter turns red, strike coffee with strike discount

The UG newsletter sent out on Tuesday morning is blacked out in protest. Or rather: turned UG-red. Coffee shops in the city centre are lending a helping hand by offering discounted coffee.

March 18, 2025, 07:15 AM

The first striker reports: Aletta

The university is still half-asleep, but the first striker at Harmonie square has shown up: Aletta Jacobs. Others are busy making protest signs and handing out flyers to early birds heading to work.

The UG board has announced its support for the strike day. They are wearing a red square as a sign of protest and invite staff members to do the same.

March 17, 2025, 08:30 PM

UG carillonneur plays Dylan’s ‘Blowin’ in the wind’

UG carillonneur Bob van der Linde will perform famous protest songs on the carillon in the tower of the Academy Building from 10 a.m. under the theme of ‘protest performance’.

The playlist includes Bob Dylan’s legendary Blowin’ in the wind, Teach your children (Crosby, Stills, Nash and Young), I believe the children are our future (Whitney Houston), 99 Luftballons (Nena) en Change is gonna come (Sam Cooke).

March 17, 2025, 08:00 PM

How strong is the willingness to take action at the UG?

Everywhere at the university – in hallways, on bulletin boards, on doors and windows (as shown in the photo taken in the Röling Building of the Faculty of Law) – there are calls to strike on Tuesday. How many employees (and supportive students) will participate remains unclear. During previous marathon strike actions, such as those in Leiden and Utrecht, several thousand people were involved.

The strike day will begin Tuesday at 7 a.m. with actions at various locations, including Zernike, arts, law, and behavioural and social sciences. This will be followed by a joint meeting with lunch at Grote Markt at 12.30 p.m. An hour later, various speakers will address the crowd, followed by a strike market until 4 p.m.

Employees do not need permission to strike. However, the UG noard asks everyone to keep in mind that exams, promotions, and other ceremonies may still go on.