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Teacher fired over Social Media Posts

Luxembourg’s Education Ministry has confirmed it fired a teacher for social media activity deemed unacceptable, while she insists her pro-Palestine posts were anti-war rather than antisemitic and taken out of context.

Last Thursday, reports circulated on social media that “a teacher was fired by the Luxembourg Ministry of Education for stories posted on her personal page in support of Palestine”. Although the ministry could not disclose specific details relating to the case, it confirmed to RTL that the teacher in question had indeed been let go due to her activity on social media, which it saw as unacceptable behaviour.

The teacher herself sees her dismissal as the result of a continuous, targeted campaign to frame her pro-Palestine activism as antisemitic: a selection of Instagram stories she had reposted were screenshotted and then submitted to the Ministry, which in turn launched procedures to terminate her contract. “The [screenshots] were taken completely out of context”, she explained to RTL. “I’m not against Jews; I have been trying from [October 7th] to raise awareness on the distinction between Zionism and Judaism, because I’m against war crimes being conducted in their name”.

Also today

• STATEC’s latest report has shown that Luxembourg GDP grew by 1.1% compared with the previous three months. Year-on-year, Luxembourg’s GDP has increased by 2.7%.
  Not all sectors followed this upward trend with construction continuing to decline, and the situation worsening compared with previous years. The sector recorded a contraction of 0.7% in the second quarter, worse than the estimation of -0.2%.
• David Walliams, the renowned British children’s author, comedian, and actor was in the Grand Duchy as part of the tour for his new festive adventure Santa and Son, which was released in October. As part of the tour he visited St Georges school, where he spoke to pupils about his life, his forty four books and the people behind some of his best loved characters, before signing copies and visiting classrooms and having an interview with RTL Today’s very own Sam Steen!
• A year after reopening to the public, Notre-Dame cathedral has drawn more than 11 million visitors, flocking to admire its restored pale stone and minimalist furnishings after the 2019 blaze that devastated the Paris landmark.
  The cathedral was reopened on December 7, 2024, after more than five years of renovation work, in the presence of heads of state, including French President Emmanuel Macron and US president-elect Donald Trump.
• Concerns have been raised about the lack of neonatal beds available in Luxembourg, with the issue forcing many families to seek assistance abroad. Around 100 babies are born before the 32nd week of pregnancy each year in Luxembourg, representing roughly 1.2% of all births, but the neonatal unit at the Centre Hospitalier de Luxembourg is currently the only facility in the country equipped to care for newborns from as early as the 24th week of pregnancy.
• The French military used anti-drone measures after five unmanned aircraft flew over a closely guarded base housing nuclear ballistic submarines, a source told AFP today.
  The drones were detected above the base on Ile Longue, a peninsula off the Brittany coast in northwestern France, at around 7:30 pm (1830 GMT) Thursday, said the source close to the operation.

On air

The competition to win a DAB+ speaker is hotting up and winners will receive the first load shortly! Also, Sam Steen met with David Walliams for a great interview

470

As reported on 19 November, the online-retail giant Amazon is planning to axe up to 470 positions in the Grand Duchy. Currently, 4,500 people are employed by Amazon in Luxembourg, and if earlier reports are correct, it would mean reducing its workforce by 10% in the region. The job cuts are part of a global plan to reduce Amazon’s workforce by a reported 14,000 worldwide.

• Representatives of the Amazon Luxembourg staff delegation – a group charged with negotiating the cuts proposed by the commerce giant – have released a joint statement outlining their concerns with the direction of ongoing talks. (Full statement linked)
• According to delegates, the direction of talks is especially “concerning” after “record-breaking” profits and a narrative of existing success that should allows Amazon to restructure its redundancies in alignment with its claims of being an “employee-first culture”.

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