As on Monday and Wednesday, many municipalities and local education authorities announced that school attendance would not be compulsory on Friday. Instead, schools offered childcare under the surveillance of teachers.
The reason for this is that it was deemed impossible for children to concentrate on learning as temperatures head towards 40°C outside. In locations where school was not made optional, an alternative programme was set up.
Education Minister Claude Meisch explained that the decision was made by local councils, as they were better positioned and had more authority over school buildings than the ministry itself. He told RTL the government did not want to dictate school closures as it would impact the country's workforce.
Primary schools are the responsibility of municipalities, rather than the Education Ministry, which MP Marc Goergen criticised in an interview with RTL this week. But due to the individual responsibility of different local authorities, each school building is equipped differently.
Secondary schools are also differentiated between more modern buildings or those which were built a century ago, and not every school is equipped to deal with the heat, Goergen said.
The Education and Science Syndicate (SEW), part of the Independent Luxembourg Trade Union Confederation (OGBL), asked members to report classroom temperatures on Friday morning to build a clearer picture of conditions in primary schools across Luxembourg.
They published a post at 9.17am on Facebook, asking teachers to confirm whether they worked in primary or secondary school, which region or municipality, and what the maximum temperature in their classroom was. The list ranged from "below 25°C" to "over 37°C".
Shortly before 5pm, 967 teachers had responded to the post. SEW said the numbers showed clearly that classrooms "were not sufficiently equipped to guarantee a safe and healthy working environment", with the average temperature reaching 32.21°C.
81% of respondents said their classroom measured temperatures between 30 and 35°C, while just 11% said their classroom was under 30°C.
The union said its demand was clear: schools must be adapted without delay to cope with extreme heat. With climate change making such conditions increasingly likely, SEW called for decisive, forward-looking measures rather than further inaction and delay.
SEW said it had already raised the issue with the Ministry of Education last year. In an open letter in German sent to Education Minister Claude Meisch this week, the union requested a meeting "to ensure this is the last summer in which staff and pupils have to endure overheated classrooms".
