Teachers push for escalation

Submitted by Matthew on 3 October, 2012 - 12:07

On 3 October the National Union of Teachers begins its “non-strike” industrial action, a sort of work-to-rule, jointly with the other large teachers’ union, NASUWT.

The NUT postponed the start from 26 September, apparently because of some question about whether the legally-due seven days’ notice had been received by all employers.

The rank-and-file local associations network LANAC met on 29 September in Leeds to take stock.

Almost all delegates agreed that teachers are already winning limited but important victories by demanding head teachers comply with the work-to-rule. Union members are organising better in many schools.

LANAC will be producing newsletters and e-circulars, and we agreed those will promote the escalation of the current action to strikes. This will be especially needed where managers deduct pay, impose disciplinary sanctions, or just ignore requests to cut back managerial lesson observations, for example.

According to official union strategy, the non-strike action is about the whole range of issues, from workload through pay and pensions to cuts, and is to demand that education minister Michael Gove negotiate and concede on all those issues. The theory is that if he doesn’t, then at some point the unions move to strike.

LANAC delegates were much less confident about that working out, and especially about actually getting new strikes over pensions.

The meeting had 25 delegates from 23 union branches. The network will call a further LANAC conference on 8 December.

It defeated proposal from SWP members to postpone the conference until 2013 on the grounds that a conference has been called by Campaign Teacher for 24 November.

NUT Local Associations Network

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