Teachers potentially striking again

[CitrusSparklePinkClouds]

Teachers want a pay rise above the rate of inflation this time.

1. Yes, don't we all?!
2. Haven't kids missed enough school?

But, seriously, if you expect to attract a higher calibre of candidate, you need to make teaching a more attractive profession for high quality candidates.

We can't attract enough of any type of candidate. Secondary recruitment figures for this year are way worse than 2019 and things were dire back then.

And no point in thinking 'oh, we're about to have a recession, that always brings more people into teaching' because 1) those trainees don't usually teach very long and 2) people can't afford to take time out to do teacher training because there's a cost of living crisis.

A very long time ago. It’s a real last resort. Thanks for pointing this out to the OP.

Wanting a pay rise that isn't actually yet another pay cut would be also good.

But yes, schools haven't been given money to pay teachers more, so they'll either have to cut education provision to pay for the pay rise, or not give it to teachers at all (this has happened before).

Remember when posters were saying that teacher recruitment didn't matter because it would pick up due to the high amount of redundancies due to covid?

I remember posters saying that teachers who weren't happy should just quit. That worked out well.

yup, its that old phrase be careful what you wish for.

Indeed. Isn't it funny, they took the advice quit and took jobs which paid more, we're more family friendly and gave them more free time.

Worked out fabulously.

Teachers haven't had a meaningful pay rise for years. On top of that because schools are now so badly resourced teachers are frequently dipping into their own pockets for materials.

Part of the problem in the UK is that we never make a fuss and as a result we don't get what we deserve. What's currently happening will affect the quality of the teaching.

I don't remember the last time teachers striked - it must have been before Tony Blair because during the last Labour administration our public services were really well run.

We (NASUWT) last went on strike in 2011, it was ostensibly about pensions, because we aren't allowed to strike over anything apart from pay and conditions, but the main reason teachers walked out is because we were all mightily fucked off at Michael Gove and his poorly thought out reforms.

This time, if we walk out, it will be on paper because of the shitty pay rise offering, but also because it isn't being funded by the government so has to come out of money that would be spent on improving education provision for children (we can't strike about that because it's political). It will also be because teachers are furious at schools being run into the ground due to lack of funding. Redundancies, cuts in courses, increases in class sizes, ridiculous lack of provision for SEN children and children with mental health issues. And no one is looking forward to another winter teaching with coats and gloves on.

Just wait till the Daily Mail starts painting it as 'greedy teachers wanting more money when there's an economic crisis on' though. Plenty of money to give tax cuts to the wealthy though, right?

I support the strikes. They might inconvenience me a little but I want my children and future generations to have motivated and well rewarded teachers. Education is so important they are now having to strike to get what they deserve.

Of course they should go on strike. Tbh most professions should!
You need people to be treated well at work so they want to stay ( and do a good job).

Exactly!

OP, your comments like 'if you care about the kids...' are disgusting. This is the exact same sort of emotional blackmail teachers have to put up with all the time, to work more and more, for less and less. You are part of the problem. Do you have any idea the crisis in teacher recruitment and retention right now? And you're wondering why?

I'm finding it really reassuring reading all the sensible posts on this thread. Hopefully some parents will be reading this and have a bit of a wake up call about the current education crisis.

Just to add my own anecdotal evidence for the crisis. At the school I work at we currently have 5 TA jobs being advertised for. We have only had 3 applicants in total, none of whom have ever worked in a school. We will now have to employ all 3 of these people because some staff are better than no staff. It will be an absolute shit show!

Unfortunately OP does not know or chose to enlighten themselves as to the actual crisis and instead comes out with headlines such as ‘if you care about the children’.

Actually that is precisely what teachers are doing and conversely OP doesn’t, instead choosing to wrap it up in a drama triangle/ it’s all about me / 21st century self indulgent / poorly researched and articulated post about teacher strike action.

I have been a teacher for two decades.

This week, I cried when one of the bulbs on my car went. I have less than £10 to my name in my account right now. I can't afford to get it fixed until payday, which is, thankfully, tomorrow.

I only food shop every other week - the week my kids are here, so they can eat a proper meal. I live off leftovers the rest of the time, because I can't food shop every week; it's too expensive.

I only put the heating on once so far, for half an hour, appalled at how fast my smart meter was going up. It was enough to stave off the worst, but I am scared for winter. I shower cold every day to save on heating cost.

I have just offered to work on one of my days off during half-term. Not because I want to be there (school are working us into the ground as it is), but because I need the extra money offered.

My school will go bankrupt with the proposed increase in pay, which is NOT funded. Our heating bill has gone from 500,000 to over 3million in addition to having to find more pay for staff. I am an experienced member of staff who was almost denied the move to the Upper Pay Scale a few years ago because my school couldn't afford the increase then.

I am a single parent with a mortgage. The monthly repayments are small compared to what rent would be, but if my almost 15 year old car breaks or another major repair is needed I will have to go into debt.

When I started working, my salary now meant a comfortable life. Now, 20 years later, I am struggling to just stay out of debt.

I can't afford to strike. I was there at the last strikes and walked with my colleagues, and all that happened was a sneer from Gove, the public, and a day's lost pay.

But soon, despite being bloody good at my job and getting cohorts of students excellent GCSE and A-level results in a shortage subject, I won't be able to afford to continue teaching.

What on earth has your random anecdote about PE got to do with anything that’s being discussed on this thread?!?

I've worked as a teacher for 25 years. I've gone on strike precisely once, for one day.
Colleagues in a different union gave gone on strike perhaps 4 days in that entire time.

There has definitely been a strike in the last 10 years as it came up on my Facebook memories recently that my daughter was off due to a strike. May not have been your union but definitely a teachers' strike. DD is in Y10 and it was early in her time at primary.

@CamilasGabagool

The hall is usually timetabled for indoor pe so if it rains then outdoor pe has to be cancelled as the hall is out of use.

I'm not sure why you feel that cancelling pe due to rain means the teacher can't be arsed. They have to find another lesson to teach you know.

Thanks for your reply @sherrystrull However I asked if the school hall was free and it was 😊

The class did do PE outside in the end (rain wasnt forecast, just a low chance of light precipitation), the headteacher did it with the children and they had a great time.

I think it's fair for parents to challenge the school when the curriculum isn't being followed

For the record, the school hall was free too! So they had indoor and outdoor choices 😚 and no excuse to cancel.

I'll be striking. You realise there is a recruitment crisis in teaching right? Teachers are leaving the professional in droves and the very limited few that are joining tend to leave after a few years. I work in one of the best comps in the county. We can't recruit staff.

Pay is crap for the hours we put in. I'd earn more doing those hours working in a supermarket, except working time directives would kick in I imagine and I wouldn't be able to work that many hours. I'm not a teacher any more. I just seem to have the job of mopping up everything going wrong with kids, while their parents tell me, literally sometimes, to fuck off.

There may have been lots of good reasons why the class did not do outdoor pe that day. The head should have checked with the teacher first.

1- if there are no support staff for first aid. My class are too young to go traipsing around the school looking for additional adults

2- if a child in the class is having a particularly bad day, a quiet session may be needed.

3- one day I broke my glasses and it wasn't safe for me to teach PE as I can't see more than a metre in front of me.

Parents who are so involved in a school that they complain if a class misses or rearranges a lesson are part of the reason teachers are leaving.

I support teachers striking. It would be very inconvenient for me, but it’s outrageous how successive governments have tried to put ever increasing stress on schools and ever decreasing funds. Even if I have to take unpaid leave, I’d rather that than have a teacher feeling suicidal teaching my child. Things are in an appalling state.
As I’ll probably be paid for time off I’ll also be volunteering to take other children in the class to increase support for teachers choosing to strike.
I feel really strongly that parents and teachers need to stand up together to the government.

Thank you @Queuesarasarah

I worked everyday in school during covid, the argument that teachers did nothing during the pandemic is wrong and misleading. We taught and supported vulnerable children and their families as well as providing full time online learning and pastoral support. I have not had a pay rise for over 10 years as am a member of senior leadership team, I don’t benefit from the teachers pay rise (which is not funded anyway) and I am currently doing the equivalent of 3 full time roles every week (deputy head, senco and safeguarding) as budget and staff cuts means that we don’t have enough staff or money to cover the statutory roles - I did not get a pay rise for this. There is an endemic disregard for those that work in schools and it is going to get worse not better unless a stand is made.

as many people have said upthread this was not the experience of their teachers especially during the first lockdown. Most vulnerable children were not allowed into school during the first lockdown unless it was a serious safeguarding concern, many children did not have any online learning in the first lockdown and lots of teachers were not in school very much at all during the first lockdown. I don’t deny that teachers work hard but you lose sympathy by constantly posting about how hard they worked during the lockdown when it was not most peoples experience