Police to 'lock down' Amsterdam city center in labor dispute

Protesting police officers will "lock down" Amsterdam city center next week Wednesday from 8:00 a.m. until noon as part of their labor actions for a better collective bargaining agreement. During the action, officers will stop people trying to enter the city center and point out banners that read: 'Enter at own risk: No police", AD reports.

A similar action was held in Eindhoven on Thursday night. On Saturday the police will hold actions in Sittard around the football match between Fortuna and FC Utrecht. On Monday actions are planned at Utrecht Central Station, Tuesday in The Hague around parliament's first meeting after summer vacation, and Wednesday in Amsterdam.

According to the police unions, the high workload officers face mean that they can no longer do all their duties properly and safety can't be guaranteed.

These are not the only labor actions by the police for a better collective bargaining agreement. Over the past weeks they've stopped writing traffic fines, stopped collecting fines, and deleted photos from speeding cameras so that speeders can't be fined. The labor actions also include not deploying police officers to major events, like the Outdoor Decibel festival earlier this month. And the unions called on officers working at the police's information desk to reduce their activities.