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Link to this page: https://www.socialistparty.org.uk/articles/28142
Posted on 23 October 2018 at 12:29 GMT
Ladywood Primary school strike
Ladywood Primary school strikers, October 2018, photo by A. Tice (Click to enlarge)
Teaching assistants join action
On 22 October teaching assistants (TAs) in Unison joined the 18-day strike by nine dinner ladies at Ladywood Primary School in Grimethorpe, Yorkshire - who are fighting against being made redundant.
The headteacher had proposed that TAs take over supervising meals to save cash.
The strikers were joined on the picket line by trade unionists and Socialist Party members from Barnsley and Sheffield.
To his credit, a Barnsley Labour councillor, Malcolm Clements, an ex-Unison convenor, attended. He said that the strike hadn't even been discussed in the Labour group!
Rather than backing the headteacher - saying the school is "well managed" - all Labour councillors should be publicly supporting the strike and questioning why over 300 parents and community have signed a petition calling for the head to go!
Angie Waller and Alistair Tice
This version of this article was first posted on the Socialist Party website on 23 October 2018 and may vary slightly from the version subsequently printed in The Socialist.
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Finance appeal
The coronavirus crisis has laid bare the class character of society in numerous ways. It is making clear to many that it is the working class that keeps society running, not the CEOs of major corporations.
The results of austerity have been graphically demonstrated as public services strain to cope with the crisis.
The government has now ripped up its 'austerity' mantra and turned to policies that not long ago were denounced as socialist. But after the corona crisis, it will try to make the working class pay for it, by trying to claw back what has been given.
- The Socialist Party's material is more vital than ever, so we can continue to report from workers who are fighting for better health and safety measures, against layoffs, for adequate staffing levels, etc.
- When the health crisis subsides, we must be ready for the stormy events ahead and the need to arm workers' movements with a socialist programme - one which puts the health and needs of humanity before the profits of a few.
2020