EPO demonstrations attract ‘close to 2,000’

Nearly 2,000 demonstrators have taken to the streets of Munich and The Hague to protest against continuing problems at the European Patent Office (EPO), it has been claimed.

Staff staged protests at both the French and Danish embassies in The Hague and at the EPO’s Pschorrhöfe buildings in Munich yesterday (December 3).

According to sources, around 1,300 people in Munich marched from the EPO office to the Justizpalast (the Palace of Justice) in the city, and around 700 workers demonstrated in The Hague.

Although the overall number of strikers has yet to be confirmed, the near 2,000 demonstrators make up around a third of the office’s 6,000-strong workforce.

The demonstrations come as workers near the half-way point in what the office’s staff union has dubbed an “incremental” five-week strike.

Workers will also walk out today (December 3) and Thursday this week.

Next week there will be a four-day strike beginning on Monday (December 8), culminating in a week-long strike the following week.