The Socialist 7 April 2009

Visteon car workers fight for their rights

Reports from Visteon plants in Belfast, Enfield and Basildon

National Union of Teachers Conference: Call national action on workload

Youth march for jobs: This is only the beginning!

NUS leaders out of touch

No solution at London G20 summit

G20 Summit protests: Democratic rights trampled on

The battle to defeat the Poll Tax

EU presses for cuts in public spending

Fast news

Stop the slaughter of Tamils in Sri Lanka

Arundhati Roy indicts the Sri Lankan Rajapakse regime

Egyptian regime: 'Scared that independent unions will succeed; scared a revolution will happen'

Solidarity with Kazakhstan oil workers

Conned by John Lewis

Stockport cab drivers fight deregulation

No cuts to further education in Wales!

Campaign forces suspension of Wirral library closures

Unison elections

Rail workers fight job cuts

Previous issues, etc

Print this issue




Link to this page: http://www.socialistparty.org.uk/issue/574/7143

Google search the site	Printable version	email to friend

Home | The Socialist 7 April 2009 | Join the Socialist Party

Subscribe | Donate | Bookshop

National Union of Teachers Conference: Call national action on workload

What kind of a work/life balance is there for any teacher working a 52-hour week? More like all work/no life!

Linda Taaffe

The government promised teachers that our workload would be cut. But even official statistics show that we're still working 50 hours a week and more. Despite the introduction of guaranteed planning and preparation time, the pressure continues to pile up. Just as we make one gain, more gets thrown at us either by government, local authorities or school managers.

After years of complaining, it really is time we put a stop to the abuse of this dedicated teaching workforce. It's not good for teachers, and it's definitely not good for children.

Is a 35-hour week too much to ask? A few years ago French workers went on strike, organised huge demonstrations and won 35 hours for many sections of workers. Isn't it time the NUT did something similar?

Last year, as we have done in previous years, NUT conference passed a motion agreeing to ballot for national strike action on workload. Conference also agreed it could be linked to pay.

Imagine if every school closed for a national strike day (for starters) to show we are not taking this terrible workload any longer, and we want decent pay too. It would lift morale and prepare for a vigorous nationwide action campaign. School-by-school negotiation, and even action, has undoubtedly brought improvements in some places, but national action would carry greater force.

Yet no such campaign has happened yet! One day of strike action on pay went ahead, but unfortunately, was not carried on any further. Moreover, there was no link with workload, as the conference had decided, a link that would have strengthened support for further strike action amongst overburdened teachers.

All that was done was to issue the same workload guidance as in previous years, guidance which really falls short - once again. It leaves schools and teachers to struggle in isolation instead of bringing the whole union together in united action. Even local NUT casework officers are suffering overwork by continually dealing with the fallout from overworked teachers!

The NUT executive must not hesitate again. A comprehensive strategy that links pay, class size and working conditions in a firm campaign of national strike action must be adopted and acted upon.